Handling and dosimetry of laser-driven ion beams for applications

The acceleration processes based on the coherent interaction of high-power lasers with matter are, by now, one of the most interesting topics in the field of particle acceleration, becoming day by day a real alternative to conventional approaches. Some of the extraordinary peculiarities of laser–matter interaction, such as the production of multi-species (gamma, X-rays, electrons, protons and ions), short-pulsed and intense beams are particularly attracting for many applications as well as for fundamental physics. In particular, laser-accelerated protons, if well controlled in terms of final energy spread, divergence and dose rate, could lead to investigate new research regimes in the field of medical physics, as well as in radiobiological applications. Many approaches are currently being developed aiming at optimizing the laser–target interaction mechanism and at collecting and selecting through dedicated transport beamlines the laser-accelerated proton beams in a future perspective to use them for the medical and radiobiological applications with a reduced uncertainty. An overview of the main parameters characterizing the laser-accelerated protons and of the transport, diagnostics and dosimetry solutions, currently adopted from the laser community, will be provided in this contribution.