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Physics: two articles published on laser–plasma acceleration
In collaboration with colleagues, experimental and theoretical physicists from Heinrich Heine University (HHU) Düsseldorf and Forschungszentrum Jülich have gained important insights into laser–plasma accelerator technology. As they report in two papers published in Reports on Progress in Physics and High Power Laser Science and Engineering, the polarization state of accelerated particles is preserved during this process. This finding is significant for a range of applications, including controlled nuclear fusion.
Particle accelerators such as those at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Geneva are typically highly complex large-scale devices. In these ring-shaped facilities, which are often several kilometres in length, magnets and radio-frequency cavities are used to accelerate elementary particles. An alternative approach is now emerging: compact laser–plasma accelerators that can be built and operated at a fraction of the cost. These accelerators can achieve acceleration gradients up to around 1,000 times higher than those of conventional accelerators. Researchers at HHU contributed significantly to this development.
A research team led by Prof. Dr. Markus Büscher, a professor of physics at HHU and group leader at the Peter Grünberg Institute in Jülich, presented the current state of research in a review article in Reports on Progress in Physics. In a separate study published in High Power Laser Science and Engineering, they report on one specific aspect of laser–plasma acceleration, namely whether the polarization – that is to say, the collective spin alignment – of accelerated particles is preserved in laser–plasma accelerators.
Why is this relevant? “Spin alignment is crucial to a range of fundamental scientific questions as it influences the interaction between particles,” explains Professor Büscher. He adds: “In controlled nuclear fusion, the reaction probability – and thus ultimately the energy produced in the reactor – increases significantly when the spins of the fusing nuclei, the ‘fusion fuel’ so to speak, are aligned in parallel.”
The researchers had to go to considerable lengths to verify whether polarization is preserved in the accelerated particles. They used a special isotope of the noble gas helium, Helium-3. On the morning of each measurement day at Forschungszentrum Jülich, they generated a pre-polarized Helium-3 gas, which they then transported in a special container to GSI Helmholtzzentrum für Schwerionenforschung in Darmstadt. The physicists were able to use the high-power PHELIX laser there to perform laser–plasma acceleration. They then used CR-39 detector plates to measure the degree of polarization of the accelerated Helium-3 ions.
Büscher: “We were able to show for the first time worldwide that the polarization of Helium-3 particles is preserved during laser–plasma acceleration. This is an important finding for use of this new acceleration technology in various fields of application.”
The findings are also of interest in the laser–plasma acceleration of other particles such as protons and electrons. The scattering of polarized electrons with protons and neutrons is expected to provide deeper insights into the structure and fundamental interactions of the building blocks of matter, for instance. “They are particularly well-suited for investigating the physics beyond the Standard Model, for example to generate the possible candidates for ‘dark matter’ known as axions,” says Professor Büscher of possible future uses.
L Reichwein, Z Gong, C Zheng, L L Ji, A Pukhov and M Büscher; Plasma acceleration of polarized particle beams; Reports on Progress in Physics 88 117001, 2025
DOI: 10.1088/1361-6633/ae1988
C. Zheng, P. Fedorets, Z. Chitgar, R. Engels, I. Engin, P. Gibbon, H. Glückler, C. Kannis, A. Pukhov, L. Reichwein, N. Schnitzler, H. Soltner, B. Zielbauer, and M. Büscher; Preservation of 3He ion polarization after laser-driven acceleration in plasma; High Power Laser Science and Engineering, 2026:1-7.
DOI: 10.1017/hpl.2026.10140
Experiment set-up. A detailed description of the image can be found below the text of the press rele ...
Copyright: AI-generated image: HHU / Markus Büscher
The magnetic box used to transport the pre-polarized 3He gas from Forschungszentrum Jülich to GSI Da ...
Copyright: FZJ / Pavel Fedorets
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