Carbon nanotubes as outstanding targets for laser-driven particle acceleration

Under the irradiation of ultraintense laser pulses, targets made of gas, solid, or artificial materials can generate high-energy electrons, ions, and X-rays comparable to conventional accelerators or national light source facilities. Designing and creating high-performance targets are the core problems for laser acceleration. Nanotechnology and nanomaterials can help to build ideal targets that do not exist in nature. This paper reviews the advances in exploiting carbon nanotubes as outstanding targets for laser-driven particle acceleration in memory of Prof. Sishen Xie, the inventor of the fabrication method. We hope that the successful implementation of such targets in enhanced ion acceleration, high-efficiency electron acceleration, and brilliant X-ray generation could attract more interdiscipline interests and promote the development of this field.

Automated summary

This paper reviews the advances in using nanotechnology and nanomaterials for laser-driven particle acceleration, with a focus on carbon nanotubes as targets. The successful implementation of these methods is expected to promote the development of this field.