Continuous Laser-Driven α Source
Abstract
Laser-driven proton-boron fusion offers a path for generation of α particles on a compact scale. Conventional solid-target experiments, however, are fundamentally limited by target degradation and low shot-repetition capacity. Here, we demonstrate a continuous laser-driven α particle source utilizing target-normal sheath acceleration from a continuously replenishable ultrathin water-leaf jet target. The proton beam interacts with a downstream boron nitride converter, driving the 11B(p,α)8Be reaction which yields three α particles. The measurement was repeated across 18,000 consecutive shots at a rate of 10 Hz. The outgoing α-particle yield and spectral fluence were measured and benchmarked against comprehensive particle-transport simulations. The numerical and experimental results reveal a pronounced flattening in the energy-differential α-particle spectrum escaping from the converter, driven by depth-dependent reaction yield and stopping power effects. The sustained stable α-particle production at high cumulative yields paves the way for applications in targeted particle therapy and laser-driven plasma-fusion research.
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BibTeX
@misc{popper2026continuous,
title = {{Continuous Laser-Driven α Source}},
author = {Noam Popper and Griffin D. Glenn and Girik Jain and Raz Halifa Levi and Tomer Catabi and Michal Elkind and Aviv Levinson and Assaf Levanon and Siegfried H. Glenzer and Ishay Pomerantz},
howpublished = {arXiv},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2609.33483},
eprint = {2609.33483},
archivePrefix = {arXiv},
url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.33483},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Continuous Laser-Driven α Source
AU - Noam Popper
AU - Griffin D. Glenn
AU - Girik Jain
AU - Raz Halifa Levi
AU - Tomer Catabi
AU - Michal Elkind
AU - Aviv Levinson
AU - Assaf Levanon
AU - Siegfried H. Glenzer
AU - Ishay Pomerantz
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/27
PB - arXiv
DO - 10.48550/arxiv.2609.33483
UR - https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.33483
AB - Laser-driven proton-boron fusion offers a path for generation of α particles on a compact scale. Conventional solid-target experiments, however, are fundamentally limited by target degradation and low shot-repetition capacity. Here, we demonstrate a continuous laser-driven α particle source utilizing target-normal sheath acceleration from a continuously replenishable ultrathin water-leaf jet target. The proton beam interacts with a downstream boron nitride converter, driving the ^11B(p,α)^8Be reaction which yields three α particles. The measurement was repeated across 18,000 consecutive shots at a rate of 10 Hz. The outgoing α-particle yield and spectral fluence were measured and benchmarked against comprehensive particle-transport simulations. The numerical and experimental results reveal a pronounced flattening in the energy-differential α-particle spectrum escaping from the converter, driven by depth-dependent reaction yield and stopping power effects. The sustained stable α-particle production at high cumulative yields paves the way for applications in targeted particle therapy and laser-driven plasma-fusion research.
ER -