Abstract
Acceleration of ultrathin foils by the laser radiation pressure promises a compact alternative to the conventional ion sources. Among the challenges on the way to practical realization, one fundamental is a strong transverse plasma instability, which develops density perturbations and breaks the acceleration. In this Letter, we develop a theoretical model supported by three-dimensional numerical simulations to explain the transverse instability growth from noise to wave breaking and its crucial effect on stopping the acceleration. The wave-broken nonlinear mode triggers rapid stochastic heating that finally explodes the target. Possible paths to mitigate this problem for getting efficient ion acceleration are discussed.
- Received 29 January 2020
- Revised 28 May 2020
- Accepted 4 August 2020
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.125.104801
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