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Plasma polymers as targets for laser-driven proton-boron fusion
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SYSNO ASEP 0575034 Document Type J - Journal Article R&D Document Type Journal Article Subsidiary J Článek ve WOS Title Plasma polymers as targets for laser-driven proton-boron fusion Author(s) Tosca, M. (IT)
Molloy, D. (AU)
McNamee, A. (GB)
Pleskunov, P. (CZ)
Protsak, M. (CZ)
Biliak, K. (CZ)
Nikitin, D. (CZ)
Kousal, J. (CZ)
Krtouš, Z. (CZ)
Hanyková, L. (CZ)
Hanuš, J. (CZ)
Biederman, H. (CZ)
Foster, T. (GB)
Nersisyan, G. (GB)
Martin, P. (GB)
Ho, C. (GB)
Macková, Anna (UJF-V) RID, ORCID, SAI
Mikšová, Romana (UJF-V) RID, ORCID, SAI
Borghesi, M. (GB)
Kar, S. (GB)
Istokskaia, V. (CZ)
Levy, Yoann (FZU-D)
Picciotto, A. (IT)
Giuffrida, L. (IT)
Margarone, D. (IT)
Choukourov, A. (CZ)Number of authors 26 Article number 1227140 Source Title Frontiers in Physics. - : Frontiers Research Foundation - ISSN 2296-424X
Roč. 11, JUL (2023)Number of pages 11 s. Publication form Print - P Language eng - English Country CH - Switzerland Keywords plasma polymer ; thin films ; boron nitride ; proton-boron fusion ; ultra-high intense lasers OECD category Nuclear physics R&D Projects EF16_013/0001812 GA MŠMT - Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports (MEYS) EF15_003/0000445 GA MŠMT - Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports (MEYS) Method of publishing Open access Institutional support UJF-V - RVO:61389005 ; FZU-D - RVO:68378271 UT WOS 001045493800001 EID SCOPUS 85167502858 DOI 10.3389/fphy.2023.1227140 Annotation Laser-driven proton-boron (pB) fusion has been gaining significant interest for energetic alpha particles production because of its neutron-less nature. This approach requires the use of B- and H-rich materials as targets, and common practice is the use of BN and conventional polymers. In this work, we chose plasma-assisted vapour phase deposition to prepare films of oligoethylenes (plasma polymers) on Boron Nitride BN substrates as an advanced alternative. The r.f. power delivered to the plasma was varied between 0 and 50 W to produce coatings with different crosslink density and hydrogen content, while maintaining the constant thickness of 1 mu m. The chemical composition, including the hydrogen concentration, was investigated using XPS and RBS/ERDA, whereas the surface topography was analyzed using SEM and AFM. We triggered the pB nuclear fusion reaction focusing laser pulses from two different systems (i.e., the TARANIS multi-TW laser at the Queen's University Belfast (United Kingdom) and the PERLA B 10-GW laser system at the HiLASE center in Prague (Czech Republic)) directly onto these targets. We achieved a yield up to 10(8) and 10(4) alpha particles/sr using the TARANIS and PERLA B lasers, respectively. Radiative-hydrodynamic and particle-in-cell PIC simulations were performed to understand the laser-target interaction and retrieve the energy spectra of the protons. The nuclear collisional algorithm implemented in the WarpX PIC code was used to identify the region where pB fusion occurs. Taken together, the results suggest a complex relationship between the hydrogen content, target morphology, and structure of the plasma polymer, which play a crucial role in laser absorption, target expansion, proton acceleration and ultimately nuclear fusion reactions in the plasma. Workplace Nuclear Physics Institute Contact Markéta Sommerová, sommerova@ujf.cas.cz, Tel.: 266 173 228 Year of Publishing 2024 Electronic address https://doi.org/10.3389/fphy.2023.1227140
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