Protons and carbon ions acceleration in the target-normal-sheath-acceleration regime using low-contrast fs laser and metal-graphene targets

fs pulsed lasers at an intensity of the order of 10¹⁸ W/cm², with a contrast of 10⁻⁵, were employed to irradiate thin foils to study the target-normal-sheath-acceleration (TNSA) regime. The forward ion acceleration was investigated using 1/11 µm thickness foils composed of a metallic sheet on which a thin reduced graphene oxide film with 10 nm thickness was deposited by single or both faces. The forward-accelerated ions were detected using SiC semiconductors connected in time-of-flight configuration. The use of intense and long pre-pulse generating the low contrast does not permit to accelerate protons above 1 MeV because it produces a pre-plasma destroying the foil, and the successive main laser pulse interacts with the expanding plasma and not with the overdense solid surface. Experimental results demonstrated that the maximum proton energies of about 700 keV and of 4.2 MeV carbon ions and higher were obtained under the condition of the optimal acceleration procedure. The measurements of ion energy and charge states confirm that the acceleration per charge state is measurable from the proton energy, confirming the Coulomb–Boltzmann-shifted theoretical model. However, heavy ions cannot be accelerated due to their mass and low velocity, which does not permit them to be subjected to the fast and high developed electric field driving the light-ion acceleration. The ion acceleration can be optimized based on the laser focal positioning and on the foil thickness, composition, and structure, as it will be presented and discussed.