100 s -level particle accelerators driven by high-density electron beams in micro structured carbon nanotube forest channel

Solid-state materials, such as carbon nanotubes (CNTs), have the potential to support ultra-high accelerating fields in the $\mathrm{TV\,m^{-1}}$ range for charged particle acceleration. In this study, we explore the feasibility of using nanostructured CNTs forest to develop plasma-based accelerator...

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Main Authors: Bifeng Lei, Hao Zhang, Cristian Bonţoiu, Alexandre Bonatto, Javier Resta-López, Guoxing Xia, Bin Qiao, Carsten Welsch
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: IOP Publishing 2025-01-01
Series:New Journal of Physics
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1088/1367-2630/adf87d
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author Bifeng Lei
Hao Zhang
Cristian Bonţoiu
Alexandre Bonatto
Javier Resta-López
Guoxing Xia
Bin Qiao
Carsten Welsch
author_facet Bifeng Lei
Hao Zhang
Cristian Bonţoiu
Alexandre Bonatto
Javier Resta-López
Guoxing Xia
Bin Qiao
Carsten Welsch
author_sort Bifeng Lei
collection DOAJ
description Solid-state materials, such as carbon nanotubes (CNTs), have the potential to support ultra-high accelerating fields in the $\mathrm{TV\,m^{-1}}$ range for charged particle acceleration. In this study, we explore the feasibility of using nanostructured CNTs forest to develop plasma-based accelerators at the $100\,\mathrm s\,\mathrm{TeV}$ -level, driven by high-density, ultra-relativistic electron beams, using fully three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations. Two different acceleration mechanisms are proposed and investigated: the surface plasmon leakage field and the bubble wakefield. The leakage field, driven by a relatively low-density beam, can achieve an acceleration field up to $\mathrm{TV\,m^{-1}}$ , capable of accelerating both electron and positron beams. In particular, due to the direct acceleration by the driver beam, the positron acceleration is highly efficient with an average acceleration gradient of $2.3\,\mathrm{TeV\,m^{-1}}$ . In contrast, the bubble wakefield mechanism allows significantly higher acceleration fields, e.g. beyond $400\,\mathrm{TV\,m^{-1}}$ , with a much higher energy transfer efficiency of 66.7%. In principle, electrons can be accelerated to PeV energies over distances of several meters. If the beam density is sufficiently high, the CNT target will be completely blown out, where no accelerating field is generated. Its threshold has been estimated. Two major challenges in these schemes are recognised and investigated. Leveraging the ultra-high energy and charge pumping rate of the driver beam, the nanostructured CNTs also offer significant potential for a wide range of advanced applications. This work represents a promising avenue for the development of ultra-compact, high-energy particle accelerators. We also outline conceptual experiments using currently available facilities, demonstrating that this approach is experimentally accessible.
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publishDate 2025-01-01
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spelling doaj-art-8d4d3e48a38b4d1fb5658c68b5fa8c6b2025-08-22T11:44:51ZengIOP PublishingNew Journal of Physics1367-26302025-01-0127808430110.1088/1367-2630/adf87d100 s -level particle accelerators driven by high-density electron beams in micro structured carbon nanotube forest channelBifeng Lei0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3932-6150Hao Zhang1Cristian Bonţoiu2Alexandre Bonatto3Javier Resta-López4https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1178-5136Guoxing Xia5https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3683-386XBin Qiao6https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7174-5577Carsten Welsch7Department of Physics, The University of Liverpool , Liverpool L69 3BX, United Kingdom; Cockcroft Institute , Warrington WA4 4AD, United KingdomDepartment of Physics, The University of Liverpool , Liverpool L69 3BX, United Kingdom; Cockcroft Institute , Warrington WA4 4AD, United KingdomDepartment of Physics, The University of Liverpool , Liverpool L69 3BX, United Kingdom; Cockcroft Institute , Warrington WA4 4AD, United KingdomFederal University of Health Sciences of Porto Alegre , Porto Alegre, RS 90050-170, BrazilICMUV, Universidad de Valencia , 46071 Valencia, SpainCockcroft Institute , Warrington WA4 4AD, United Kingdom; Department of Physics and Astronomy, The University of Manchester , Manchester M13 9PL, United KingdomCenter for Applied Physics and Technology, HEDPS, and SKLNPT, School of Physics, Peking University , Beijing 100871, People’s Republic of ChinaDepartment of Physics, The University of Liverpool , Liverpool L69 3BX, United Kingdom; Cockcroft Institute , Warrington WA4 4AD, United KingdomSolid-state materials, such as carbon nanotubes (CNTs), have the potential to support ultra-high accelerating fields in the $\mathrm{TV\,m^{-1}}$ range for charged particle acceleration. In this study, we explore the feasibility of using nanostructured CNTs forest to develop plasma-based accelerators at the $100\,\mathrm s\,\mathrm{TeV}$ -level, driven by high-density, ultra-relativistic electron beams, using fully three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations. Two different acceleration mechanisms are proposed and investigated: the surface plasmon leakage field and the bubble wakefield. The leakage field, driven by a relatively low-density beam, can achieve an acceleration field up to $\mathrm{TV\,m^{-1}}$ , capable of accelerating both electron and positron beams. In particular, due to the direct acceleration by the driver beam, the positron acceleration is highly efficient with an average acceleration gradient of $2.3\,\mathrm{TeV\,m^{-1}}$ . In contrast, the bubble wakefield mechanism allows significantly higher acceleration fields, e.g. beyond $400\,\mathrm{TV\,m^{-1}}$ , with a much higher energy transfer efficiency of 66.7%. In principle, electrons can be accelerated to PeV energies over distances of several meters. If the beam density is sufficiently high, the CNT target will be completely blown out, where no accelerating field is generated. Its threshold has been estimated. Two major challenges in these schemes are recognised and investigated. Leveraging the ultra-high energy and charge pumping rate of the driver beam, the nanostructured CNTs also offer significant potential for a wide range of advanced applications. This work represents a promising avenue for the development of ultra-compact, high-energy particle accelerators. We also outline conceptual experiments using currently available facilities, demonstrating that this approach is experimentally accessible.https://doi.org/10.1088/1367-2630/adf87dcarbon nanotubeacceleratorshigh-density electronplasma accelerators
spellingShingle Bifeng Lei
Hao Zhang
Cristian Bonţoiu
Alexandre Bonatto
Javier Resta-López
Guoxing Xia
Bin Qiao
Carsten Welsch
100 s -level particle accelerators driven by high-density electron beams in micro structured carbon nanotube forest channel
New Journal of Physics
carbon nanotube
accelerators
high-density electron
plasma accelerators
title 100 s -level particle accelerators driven by high-density electron beams in micro structured carbon nanotube forest channel
title_full 100 s -level particle accelerators driven by high-density electron beams in micro structured carbon nanotube forest channel
title_fullStr 100 s -level particle accelerators driven by high-density electron beams in micro structured carbon nanotube forest channel
title_full_unstemmed 100 s -level particle accelerators driven by high-density electron beams in micro structured carbon nanotube forest channel
title_short 100 s -level particle accelerators driven by high-density electron beams in micro structured carbon nanotube forest channel
title_sort 100 s level particle accelerators driven by high density electron beams in micro structured carbon nanotube forest channel
topic carbon nanotube
accelerators
high-density electron
plasma accelerators
url https://doi.org/10.1088/1367-2630/adf87d
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