Laboratory studies of neutral and collimated electron-positron beams

Lead Research Organisation: Queen's University Belfast
Department Name: Sch of Mathematics and Physics

Abstract

Electron-positron pair plasmas (EPPs) represent a unique state of matter, whereby an intrinsic and complete symmetry exists between the negatively charged (matter) and positively charged (anti-matter) particles. EPPs are emitted, in the form of ultra-relativistic winds or collimated jets, by some of the most energetic or powerful objects in the Universe, such as black-holes, pulsars, and quasars. They are frequently associated with violent emission of gamma-rays in the form of short-lived (milliseconds up to a few minutes) bursts, which are amongst the most luminous events ever observed in the Universe. These systems represent a unique astrophysical laboratory, since their immense distance from Earth (some exceeding a billion light years) provides invaluable insight into the Universe at its early stage and allow testing physical models at their very limits.
However, the dynamics of EPPs in the intergalactic medium and, crucially, their radiative properties, are still subject of fervent debate in the community, chiefly due to the fact that our knowledge of them is intrinsically restricted to astrophysical observation and numerical modelling. Precious help would naturally arise from dedicated laboratory experiments, in which the microphysics can be accessed in a reproducible and controllable manner. However, despite dedicated efforts at several leading research institutes worldwide, the generation of a neutral EPP in the laboratory has until recently remained elusive.
Recently, our research group has succeeded in generating a neutral EPP in a fully optical experimental setup, placing our group at the forefront of this research branch. This is an absolute first in the area, despite continued dedicated efforts from other research institutes worldwide. Besides the academic interest, this work has proven to attract significant media attention, as demonstrated by dedicated articles in the New Scientist, CERN Courier, Physics World, and The Conversation, among others.
Our proposed research project is then focused on consolidating our world-leading role in this emerging branch of experimental physics by expanding our experimental investigations of this fascinating state of matter. In particular, we aim at generating, for the first time, a collimated and neutral EPP and study its interaction with a background ionised medium over cm scales. We aim at spatially and temporally characterising instabilities arising during the EPP propagation, from its early stages up to saturation. The extraction of detailed experimental data on the plasma dynamics and subsequent field generation will provide the first laboratory platform for the small-scale study of astrophysical jets and GRB emission, against which numerical models used to interpret astrophysical observations can be compared and refined.

Planned Impact

Our proposed research project is focused on consolidating our world-leading role in an emerging branch of experimental physics: the study of electron-positron pair plasmas in the laboratory. The Principal Investigator has carried out the first pioneering experiments in this area, and seeks to expand these exciting preliminary results into regimes of direct relevance to astrophysics.

The successful completion of this research projects will have ample repercussions for the already high level of scientific research in the UK, since it will highlight our group as world-leaders in the field of plasma physics and laser-based laboratory astrophysics.

The first study of the dynamics of electron-positron plasmas will provide an invaluable set of experimental data that will dramatically advance our understanding of plasma physics and, more in general, of collective systems. Besides, we aim at creating and studying phenomena that are of direct relevance to astrophysics, since they are thought to be at the core of the dynamics of astrophysical jets and the subsequent generation of gamma-ray bursts and acceleration of cosmic particles. Providing a set of experimental data in this area will allow, for the first time, benchmarking and refining numerical and analytical models currently used to interpret astrophysical observations. The proposed research project will then open up a new field of experimental research, namely the study of electron-positron pair plasmas in the laboratory, and it will benefit a wide range of research and academic communities, including plasma physics, astrophysics, and theoretical physics.

Moreover, we envisage that the successful completion of the proposed research project will fascinate also the general audience, improving the general conception of scientific research within the UK and abroad. The interest of the general audience for this subject and, in particular, for the work carried out by the Principal Investigator in this area, is already demonstrated by the significant amount of media coverage that the Principal Investigator has obtained. This includes dedicated articles in the New Scientist, Physics World, and the CERN Courier, together with 3 dedicated articles in the popular science website "The Conversation", which have already been read by more than half a million readers around the world in only five months since their release.

Publications

10 25 50
 
Description New insight in the dynamics of anti-matter plasmas, of direct relevance to astrophysics. New sources of positrons have been developed, with clear and direct application to the manufacturing industry and accelerator science
Exploitation Route New area of research inaugurated. The work also formed a central part of the EuPRAXIA project, which is now included in the ESFRI roadmap. The work is also instrumental for the construction and operation of EPAC in the UK
Sectors Education

Energy

Environment

Manufacturing

including Industrial Biotechology

 
Description Series of popular science articles and outreach activities, as outlined in the work associated with this grant. 1 PhD awarded. The work has resulted in a specific target area designed for the EuPRAXIA facility (included in the ESFRI roadmap) and in two contracts, one with the Extreme Photonics Application Centre (EPAC) in the UK and one with the Extreme Light Infrastructure (Czech Republic) to offer such a capability to academic and private sector users
First Year Of Impact 2023
Sector Environment,Other
Impact Types Cultural

 
Description Building of a national steering committee for research in advanced particle accelerators
Geographic Reach National 
Policy Influence Type Membership of a guideline committee
URL http://pwasc.org.uk
 
Description Inclusion of large-scale project in the ESFRI roadmap
Geographic Reach Europe 
Policy Influence Type Citation in other policy documents
Impact Inclusion of large-scale project in the ESFRI roadmap
URL https://www.esfri.eu/latest-esfri-news/new-ris-roadmap-2021
 
Description preparation of the update of the European strategy for particle physics
Geographic Reach Europe 
Policy Influence Type Participation in a guidance/advisory committee
Impact plan to detail the funding routes for Europe in particle physics and identify facilities and access routes for both academic and private sector users
 
Description Consolidated Grant
Amount £2,371,437 (GBP)
Funding ID ST/P000312/1 
Organisation Science and Technologies Facilities Council (STFC) 
Sector Public
Country United Kingdom
Start 01/2017 
End 01/2020
 
Description Design and implementation of a Compton-scattering source at ELI-BL
Amount £60,301 (GBP)
Organisation Extreme Light Infrastructure Beamlines 
Sector Public
Country Czech Republic
Start 03/2024 
End 04/2025
 
Description Design and testing of the positron and Compton beamlines for EPAC
Amount £63,748 (GBP)
Organisation Rutherford Appleton Laboratory 
Sector Academic/University
Country United Kingdom
Start 03/2024 
End 03/2025
 
Description E-320 experiment at FACET-II
Amount £54,060 (GBP)
Funding ID EP/T021659/1 
Organisation Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) 
Sector Public
Country United Kingdom
Start 03/2020 
End 02/2021
 
Description EPSRC platform grant
Amount £1,389,644 (GBP)
Funding ID EP/P010059/1 
Organisation Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) 
Sector Public
Country United Kingdom
Start 01/2017 
End 12/2020
 
Description EUPRAX IA - SEP- 2108248 15
Amount £103,416 (GBP)
Organisation Innovate UK 
Sector Public
Country United Kingdom
Start 11/2022 
End 10/2025
 
Description I-CASE PhD studentship co-funded by EPSRC and DSTL (Defence Science and Technology Laboratory)
Amount £87,696 (GBP)
Organisation Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) 
Sector Public
Country United Kingdom
Start 09/2020 
End 03/2024
 
Description The new intensity frontier: exploring quantum electrodynamic plasmas
Amount £375,452 (GBP)
Funding ID EP/V049186/1 
Organisation Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) 
Sector Public
Country United Kingdom
Start 12/2021 
End 05/2025
 
Description Ultra-short and tuneable positron beams for high-resolution and volumetric inspection of materials
Amount £199,984 (GBP)
Funding ID EP/V044397/1 
Organisation Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) 
Sector Public
Country United Kingdom
Start 06/2021 
End 12/2023
 
Title A laser-plasma platform for photon-photon physics: the two photon Breit-Wheeler process 
Description The data contained in this repository was used in the production of the publication "A laser-plasma platform for photon-photon physics: the two photon Breit-Wheeler process". https://doi.org/10.1088/1367-2630/ac3048 
Type Of Material Database/Collection of data 
Year Produced 2021 
Provided To Others? Yes  
URL https://zenodo.org/record/5027590
 
Title X-ray absorption spectroscopy using an ultrafast laboratory-scale laser-plasma accelerator source 
Description The data contained in this repository was used in the production of the publication "X-ray absorption spectroscopy using an ultrafast laboratory-scale laser-plasma accelerator source" 
Type Of Material Database/Collection of data 
Year Produced 2023 
Provided To Others? Yes  
URL https://zenodo.org/record/7876185
 
Description CEA: LYDIL group 
Organisation Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA)
Country France 
Sector Public 
PI Contribution Collaborative experiments: the group provided access to and operation of their high-intensity laser laboratory. We provided man-power and consumables
Collaborator Contribution Collaborative experiments: the group provided access to and operation of their high-intensity laser laboratory. We provided man-power and consumables
Impact collaborative experiment under the ARIES network. Results under analysis and preparation for publication
Start Year 2017
 
Description DESY: novel plasma accelerators 
Organisation Deutsches Electronen-Synchrotron (DESY)
Country Germany 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution Currently collaborating on joint experiments (some published) and within the EuPRAXIA consortium for the next-generation of compact particle accelerators
Collaborator Contribution Collaborative experiments
Impact publications and on-going preparation of european large-scale funding proposals
Start Year 2017
 
Description ELI-ALPS: collaborative experiments 
Organisation ELI Attosecond Light Pulse Source
Country Hungary 
Sector Charity/Non Profit 
PI Contribution collaborative research published and preparation of experiments at ELI-ALPS
Collaborator Contribution collaborative research published and preparation of experiments at ELI-ALPS
Impact https://journals.aps.org/prab/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevAccelBeams.24.073402
Start Year 2021
 
Description ELI-NP: collaborative experiments 
Organisation Extreme Light Infrastructure - Nuclear Physics (ELI-NP)
Country Romania 
Sector Public 
PI Contribution Commissioning experiments of the facility carried out and further experiments being planned
Collaborator Contribution Commissioning experiments of the facility carried out and further experiments being planned
Impact Commissioning experiments of the facility carried out and further experiments being planned
Start Year 2021
 
Description EuPRAXIA collaboration 
Organisation Deutsches Electronen-Synchrotron (DESY)
Country Germany 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution International collaboration for the EuPRAXIA project formalised by Consortium Agreement. It has already resulted in the publication of the Conceptual Design Report for the machine (https://link.springer.com/article/10.1140/epjst/e2020-000127-8) and inclusion in the ESFRI roadmap
Collaborator Contribution publication of the Conceptual Design Report for the machine (https://link.springer.com/article/10.1140/epjst/e2020-000127-8) and inclusion in the ESFRI roadmap
Impact publication of the Conceptual Design Report for the machine (https://link.springer.com/article/10.1140/epjst/e2020-000127-8) and inclusion in the ESFRI roadmap
Start Year 2016
 
Description Experimental work: HERCULES 
Organisation University of Michigan
Department Department of Physics
Country United States 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution collaborative experiments
Collaborator Contribution collaborative experiments including the use of their laser laboratory: HERCULES
Impact publication of high profile articles in world-leading journals.
Start Year 2011
 
Description Facility access: Apollon laser facility 
Organisation National Center for Scientific Research (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique CNRS)
Department Laboratory for the user of intense lasers (LULI)
Country France 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution Facility access for a 4-week experiment and funding secured from ARIES
Collaborator Contribution Facility access for a 4-week experiment and funding secured from ARIES
Impact Facility access for a 4-week experiment and funding secured from ARIES
Start Year 2021
 
Description ICL collaboration 
Organisation Imperial College London
Country United Kingdom 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution collaborative experiments
Collaborator Contribution collaborative experiments
Impact publication of high profile articles in world-leading journals
Start Year 2011
 
Description Jena: collaborative QED experiments 
Organisation Friedrich Schiller University Jena (FSU)
Country Germany 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution collaborative experiments in strong-field QED and award of a multi-million grant for experimental campaigns at SLAC
Collaborator Contribution collaborative experiments in strong-field QED and award of a multi-million grant for experimental campaigns at SLAC
Impact joint publications in strong-field QED and award of a multi-million grant for experimental campaigns at SLAC
Start Year 2016
 
Description LUXE: collaboration with DESY and EuXFEL 
Organisation Deutsches Electronen-Synchrotron (DESY)
Country Germany 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution Collaboration to design experiments at the EuXFEL. Current letter of intent published: (https://arxiv.org/abs/1909.00860) and conceptual design report published (https://link.springer.com/article/10.1140/epjs/s11734-021-00249-z). CD0 status granted by DESY and current submission to obtain CD1
Collaborator Contribution Collaborative work
Impact Publication of a letter of intent: (https://arxiv.org/abs/1909.00860). Current preparation of other two scientific articles. Conceptual design report published (https://link.springer.com/article/10.1140/epjs/s11734-021-00249-z). CD0 status granted by DESY and current submission to obtain CD1
Start Year 2019
 
Description LUXE: collaboration with DESY and EuXFEL 
Organisation European XFEL
Country Germany 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution Collaboration to design experiments at the EuXFEL. Current letter of intent published: (https://arxiv.org/abs/1909.00860) and conceptual design report published (https://link.springer.com/article/10.1140/epjs/s11734-021-00249-z). CD0 status granted by DESY and current submission to obtain CD1
Collaborator Contribution Collaborative work
Impact Publication of a letter of intent: (https://arxiv.org/abs/1909.00860). Current preparation of other two scientific articles. Conceptual design report published (https://link.springer.com/article/10.1140/epjs/s11734-021-00249-z). CD0 status granted by DESY and current submission to obtain CD1
Start Year 2019
 
Description Princeton: experiments at SLAC 
Organisation Princeton University
Department Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory
Country United States 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution award of a multi-million grant for collaborative experiments at the Stanford Linear Accelerator
Collaborator Contribution award of a multi-million grant for collaborative experiments at the Stanford Linear Accelerator
Impact award of a multi-million grant for collaborative experiments at the Stanford Linear Accelerator
Start Year 2018
 
Description QED experiments 
Organisation University of Michigan
Country United States 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution Collaborative experiments
Collaborator Contribution Use of their laser system: HERCULES
Impact DOIs: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.110.255002 10.1088/0741-3335/55/12/124017 10.1103/PhysRevLett.113.224801 10.1038/ncomms7747 10.1063/1.4875336
Start Year 2012
 
Description QED experiments: plasma modelling 
Organisation University of Lisbon
Department Instituto Superior Tecnico
Country Portugal 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution experimental contribution
Collaborator Contribution theoretical contribution
Impact 10.1038/ncomms7747
Start Year 2014
 
Description Stanford: experiments at SLAC FACET-II 
Organisation Stanford University
Department SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
Country United States 
Sector Public 
PI Contribution award of a multi-million grant for collaborative experiments at the Stanford Linear Accelerator
Collaborator Contribution award of a multi-million grant for collaborative experiments at the Stanford Linear Accelerator
Impact award of a multi-million grant for collaborative experiments at the Stanford Linear Accelerator
Start Year 2018
 
Description Strathclyde university: collaborative experiments 
Organisation University of Strathclyde
Department Faculty of Science
Country United Kingdom 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution Collaborative experiments and publications
Collaborator Contribution Joint publications
Impact Joint publications and preparation of multi-million european grant within the EuPRAXIA consortium
Start Year 2016
 
Description Theoretical support 
Organisation Max Planck Society
Department Max Planck Institute for Nuclear Physics
Country Germany 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution carry out experiments in the area
Collaborator Contribution theoretical support and data interpretation
Impact Publication of high profile articles in international scientific papers. Further funding stemmed out of this collaboration. Invitation to international conferences
Start Year 2011
 
Description collaboration with Imperial College London 
Organisation Imperial College London
Country United Kingdom 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution scientific collaboration funded with EP/V049186/1
Collaborator Contribution scientific collaboration funded with EP/V049186/1
Impact several scientific publications and collaborative experiments at national and international facilities
Start Year 2021
 
Description collabroation with the Patrick G Johnston Centre for Cancer Research 
Organisation Queen's University Belfast
Department Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology
Country United Kingdom 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution collaborative experiments in ultra-high dose-rate irradiation of cells for cancer therapy. First paper published (https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-6560/ac5bfd) and data analysis underway towards preparation of a further scientific paper. Current preparation of a large-scale proposal to a funding agency
Collaborator Contribution collaborative experiments in ultra-high dose-rate irradiation of cells for cancer therapy. First paper published (https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-6560/ac5bfd) and data analysis underway towards preparation of a further scientific paper. Current preparation of a large-scale proposal to a funding agency
Impact collaborative experiments in ultra-high dose-rate irradiation of cells for cancer therapy. First paper published (https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-6560/ac5bfd) and data analysis underway towards preparation of a further scientific paper. Current preparation of a large-scale proposal to a funding agency
Start Year 2021
 
Description contracted collaboration with DSTL 
Organisation Defence Science & Technology Laboratory (DSTL)
Country United Kingdom 
Sector Public 
PI Contribution design of experimental setups and detection systems for a novel laser-driven muon source. First proof-of-principle experiment carried out at the Extreme Light Infrastructrure (data analysis in progress).
Collaborator Contribution Scientific collaboration
Impact L. Calvin et al., Laser-driven muon production for material inspection and imaging Front. Phys. https://doi.org/10.3389/fphy.2023.1177486
Start Year 2021
 
Description contracted collaboration with the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory 
Organisation Rutherford Appleton Laboratory
Department Central Laser Facility
Country United Kingdom 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution design and implementation of a positron beamline and a Compton-scattered photon beamline for the Extreme Photonics Applications Centre (EPAC)
Collaborator Contribution Direct contribution to fund a PDRA and collaborative scientific work
Impact contract for 1 year for an overall value of £ 63,748
Start Year 2023
 
Description theoretical support: QED numerical 
Organisation University of York
Country United Kingdom 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution Experimental work on high-intensity laser-matter interactions for validating numerical models
Collaborator Contribution Numerical modelling of experiments on high-intensity laser-matter interactions
Impact Ongoing experiments: no publications as yet
Start Year 2015
 
Description ABC 
Form Of Engagement Activity A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Public/other audiences
Results and Impact live interview with ABC Australia
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2016
 
Description BBC 
Form Of Engagement Activity A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Public/other audiences
Results and Impact live interview with BBC radio 5
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2016
 
Description Interview for the French magazine La Recherche 
Form Of Engagement Activity A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Public/other audiences
Results and Impact Interview for the French magazine La Recherche
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2020
URL https://www.qub.ac.uk/schools/SchoolofMathematicsandPhysics/News/FrenchscientificmagazineLaRecherche...
 
Description New Scientist article 
Form Of Engagement Activity A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Public/other audiences
Results and Impact Popular science article published in the magazine New Scientist
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2013
URL https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn23748-tabletop-accelerator-shoots-cheap-antimatter-bullets/
 
Description New Scientist article 
Form Of Engagement Activity A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Public/other audiences
Results and Impact Popular science article on my research published in the magazine New Scientist
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2017
URL https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg23631530-400-how-a-fiery-matterantimatter-union-may-lead-to-l...
 
Description Popular science article in Conversation 
Form Of Engagement Activity A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Public/other audiences
Results and Impact Article published in the Conversation, attracting 40,000 readers. Reposted by IFL, BBC news, Daily Mail, Belfast LIVE.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2017
URL https://theconversation.com/how-we-created-a-mini-gamma-ray-burst-in-the-lab-for-the-first-time-8993...
 
Description Popular science article in the new scientist 
Form Of Engagement Activity A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Public/other audiences
Results and Impact Article published in the New Scientist
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2020
URL https://www.newscientist.com/article/2241333-the-us-navy-patented-a-device-to-make-laser-ghost-plane...
 
Description Talk for the Pint of Science festival (2018) 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach National
Primary Audience Public/other audiences
Results and Impact Public talk during the Pint of Science national event
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2018
URL https://pintofscience.co.uk/event/give-me-an-atom-and-i-will-move-the-world-technology-for-our-futur...