The Laser-Plasma Summer School -LAPLASS- is a specialized international event organized every year by the Spanish Center for Pulsed Lasers -CLPU- and the CLPU Laser-Plasma Chair at the University of Salamanca. Laser-driven plasma is the primary subject of investigation in modern high-power laser facilities. The Centro de Láseres Pulsados (CLPU) is one of the most representative facilities in this area operating a PW level system working at 1-10 Hz, VEGA. The fourth edition, titled ‘Experimental methods in High-Intensity Laser-Plasma processes’, will be supported by the European Project ‘IMPULSE‘, in which the CLPU participates.
HOME
The CLPU Laser-Plasma (LaPlas) Chair at the University of Salamanca (USAL) has been promoted by the CLPU Advisory Committee and created in 2014 by CLPU with the following goals:
- Promote and develop LAser-Plasma Physics at the University of Salamanca and in Spain
- Support the experimental activities run at VEGA, the CLPU petawatt laser system, by driving both national and international users community
The Director o the Chair is Dr. Luca Volpe
The main research lines of LaPlas are:
- High Power laser-driven particle acceleration
- Laser-Driven plasmas at extreme conditions
- Inertial Confinement approach to Fusion
- Laser-Plasma and particle beam diagnostic techniques
- Numerical simulations for Laser-Plasma processes
The LaPlas Chair organizes and supports several national and international activities among which:
- Master courses on Laser-Plasma Physics and related diagnostics (2ECT)
- PhD programs on Laser-PLasma Physics and applications
- A Laser-Plasma international Schools (LaPlaSS) annually in September (click here to take a look to LaPlaSS 2020)
The LaPlas is also involved in two master courses at the USAL:
- Máster Universitario en Física y Tecnología de los Láseres (2ECT)
- Retos Sociales de la Ciencia y la Tecnología de Frontera (1 ECT)
LaPlas is involved in several European projects H2020 and ERASMUS+ and several experiments at the CLPU and at the laser laboratories and aborad that are periodically organized under the umbrella of the Chair.
TRAINING
Internships (Prácticas Curriculares)
A series of topics are offered by CLPU and supported by the LaPlas for students Internships. The internship at CLPU is structured in three blocks:
- A first formation in the Experimental methods for High-Intensity Laser-Plasma processes
- Participation in an experimental activity related to VEGA and or targetry and diagnostics
- Involvement in the analysis of experimental data
Each of the students will be supervised by one senior and supported by CLPU team for the period he/she will spend at the CLPU.
The number of credits can vary depending on the defined job even if we recommend a minimum of 9 ECTS.
Numerical oriented topics are also possible where the part of the analysis of the data is more important than the others.
Bachelor and Master Thesis
LaPlas offers different possible research lines for Bachelor and Master Thesis. It is preferable to contact directly with the Director of the Chair, Luca Volpe, to decide the possible topics. At the bottom a list of possible lines.
Ph.D. at USAL
The Laser-Plasma Chair participates to both the Ph.D. programs:
- DO12 – Fisica Aplicada y Tecnología (R.D. 99/2011)
- DO13 – Física Fundamental y Matemáticas (R.D. 99/2011)
At the moment 5 Ph.D. students are involved in Ph.D. programs with LaPlas. The Ph.D. themes are connected with the research lines carried on by the Chair and by the CLPU in collaboration with the applied and theoretical Physics departments at the University of Salamanca (see for example the list of possible lines at the bottom).
LaPlas Ph.D. programs offer possibilities of International collaboration with the main laboratories and research centers in the EU and abroad.
List of possible lines of research
- Laser-Particle and Radiation Acceleration
- Warm dense matter and high-energy Physics
- Laser-Fusion
- Advanced methods for:
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- Targetry
- Diagnostics
- Numerical Simulations (Kinetics and Monte Carlo Methods)
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- Multy body theory for Laser-Plasma Physics
COURSES
In this edition, the CLPU works in collaboration with ProBono COST Action CA 21128 to present the
5th Laser-Plasmas Summer School (LaPLaSS) focused on
High-Intensity laser-plasma processes and related applications
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LaPlaS Undergraduate Courses at USAL
The undergraduate courses are organized through the USAL institution ‘Centro de Formación Permanente‘.
For any information you want, please write to the Director of the CLPU Laser-Plasma Chair, Luca Volpe.
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- Targetry & Diagnostics methods for laser-plasma experiments
- Charged particle beams interaction & laser-driven plasmas
- Intense course for MSc & Ph.D. students @ USAL on: Laser-Plasma Physics and Experimental Methods(2 ECTS)
- Intense course for MSc & Ph.D. students @ USAL on: Numerical Methods for Laser-Plasma Physics (2 ECTS)
- Intense course for MSc & Ph.D. students @ USAL on: Free Electron Laser & HIgh Brilliant Electron Beams (1 ECTS)
(2019-2020)
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- Intense courses for MSc & Ph.D. students @ USAL on: Fundament on Laser-Plasma Physics (2 ECTS)
- Intense courses for MSc & Ph.D. students @ USAL on: Numerical Methods for Laser-Plasma (2 ECTS)
- Intense courses for MSc & Ph.D. students @ USAL on: Free Electron Laser (1 ECTS)
(2018-2019)
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- Intense courses for MSc & Ph.D. students @ USAL on: Fundament on Laser-Plasma Physics (2 ECTS)
(2017-2018)
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- Intense courses for MSc & Ph.D. students @ USAL on: Fundament on Laser-Plasma Physics (2 ECTS)
LaPlaS Master Courses at USAL
(2020-2021) NEWS
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- Máster Universitario en Física y Tecnología de los Láseres. Lectures on ‘Laser-Matter Interaction’ (2 ECTS)
- Máster en Estudios de la Ciencia, la Tecnología y la Innovación ‘Retos sociales de la Ciencia y Tecnología de Frontera’ (1 ECTS)
- Máster Universitario en Modelización Matemática
(2019-2020)
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- Máster Universitario en Física y Tecnología de los Láseres. Lectures on ‘Laser-Matter Interaction’ (2 ECTS)
- Máster en Estudios de la Ciencia, la Tecnología y la Innovación ‘Retos sociales de la Ciencia y Tecnología de Frontera’ (1 ECTS)
(2018-2019)
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- Máster Universitario en Física y Tecnología de los Láseres. Lectures on ‘Laser-Matter Interaction’ (2 ECTS)
(2017-2018)
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- Máster Universitario en Física y Tecnología de los Láseres. Lectures on ‘Laser-Matter Interaction’ (2 ECTS)
SCHOOLS
In this edition, the CLPU works in collaboration with ProBono COST Action CA 21128 to present the
5th Laser-Plasmas Summer School (LaPLaSS) focused on
High-Intensity laser-plasma processes and related applications
LaPlaSS – Laser-Plasma Summer School
The Laser-Plasma Chair at the University of Salamanca (LaPlas) was created by CLPU in order to promote and develop LAser-Plasma Physics in Salamanca and in Spain, to support the experimental activities in the PW system VEGA @ CLPU, to drive national and international user community around Salamanca, and to form and train a new generation of researchers in the field of High-Power Lasers plasmas and particle-radiation beams to enable them to make optimum use of laser facilities in novel applications. This last is the context where our specialized summer school was born.
The Laser-Plasma Summer School has been created by the Laser-Plasma Chair and the CLPU and it is supported by the Laserlab Europe EU network. The intend of the school is to introduce and include a new generation of students in Laser-Plasma Physics; Láser-Plasma is a short name which meaning includes all the physical process that happens in extreme conditions where a PW-class laser as VEGA is focused onto matter. PW-class lasers are nowadays a well-established reality in Europe and abroad and their main characteristics are the extremely short duration (down to femtoseconds) and the possibility to work at a high-repetition-rate.
Here you have more info about the editions of LAPLASS:
Other Schools
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- ERASMUS+ – PowerlaPs training school (March 2019): Laser Plasma Diagnostics – Theory and Experiments (link)
THESIS
Ph.D. Thesis
- Sophia Malko: Charged particle beam in laser-driven Extreme State of Matter [Defended]
- Marine Huault: Laser-driven proton sources @ HRR for medical applications [Running]
- Valeria Ospina: Diagnostic development of femtosecond time-resolved plasma processes in Laser-Plasma Physics [Running. Joint supervision with the University of Bordeaux]
- Ghassan Zeraouli: Kirk-Patrick Baez Microscope for Laser-Driven X-Ray bean transport and focusing [Running]
- Carlos Salgado: Laser-Particle acceleration in near-critical and under critical plasmas [Running]
Bachelor Degrees
- David Minet Casado (Univeristy of Murcia): Energía de detección de protones en Warm Dense Matter [2020]
- Javier Curto (University of Salamanca): Diseño de un selector de energías de iones isócromo basado en imanes permanentes para ser usado en el contexto de la aceleración de iones por medio de láseres de alta potencia y sus aplicaciones [2020]
DIRECTOR
1, 2, 3 Luca Volpe
1 Director of the CLPU Laser-Plasma Chair at the University of Salamanca
2 Centro de Láseres Pulsados
3 Instituto de Física Fundamental y Matemáticas de la USAL
STATUS
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- Director of the CLPU Laser-Plasma Chair at the University of Salamanca (USAL)
- Responsible for the Scientific research and Diagnostic-development program at CLPU
- Member of the Panel for User Access at the VEGA system in CLPU
- Chairman of the BP&IF Board section of the European Physical Society
- Member of the Euro Fusion Scientific Panel for Inertial Confinement Fusion Section
- Co-Chair of the Access panel of Laserlab-Europe V
- Member of the Institute of Fundamental Physics and Mathematics at the University of Salamanca
FIELD OF RESEARCH
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- Extreme intensity, ultra-short laser-matter interaction
- High-energy Physics
- Laser-driven particle and radiation sources
- Advanced HRR diagnostics
- Ions probing matter and plasmas
- Laser-Plasma numerical methods (PIC, Kinetic scheme and Monte Carlo Codes)
- Laser-driven shocks and highly compressed materials
- Fast ignition scheme to inertial confinement approach to fusion
PUBLICATIONS
Author of about 70 publications in peer-reviewed journals.
Data:
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- Citations: 600
- h-index: 15
- i-10 index: 19
- Quartile distribution: Q1 (45%), Q2 (35%), Q3 (20%)
Links:
LASER FUSION
The continuation of HIPER – HIPER Plus
Proposal for a new ‘direct-drive’ laser-fusion programme in the EU
The aim of this consortium under creation is to prompt the European laser-fusion community to rejuvenate the enthusiasm that spawned the pioneering ‘HIPER‘ project, and to work together to set the building blocks of a new related EU project.
Our initiative is timely also because of the very encouraging results obtained at the NIF facility in the US, where a recent laser fusion experiment nearly reached the ignition threshold (read the news here)
Letter of HIPER Plus promotion (here attached)
The continuation of HIPER-HIPER Plus proposal for a new ‘direct-drive’ laser-fusion program in the UE
Letter of HiPER Plus sustainability (more here)
An evaluation of sustainability and societal impact of laser direct-drive fusion technologies: a case for a new research infrastructure
The initiative has recently been approved and is fully supported by the Beam Plasmas and Inertial Fusion Board of EPS
If you are wiling to join the action and be part of the collaboration agreement under development, please contact the responsible person below. The expression of interest can be signed by individual researchers or bu group ñeaders, laboratories/organizations legal representatives in the case where the research group, the laboratory or the organization is the participant.
Contact person: Luca Volpe (lvolpe@clpu.es)
MISCELLANY
A new step forward Fusion energy!
‘Thanks to Lasers’
Salamanca, 25th of August, 2021
Introduction and main result
Reaching potential infinite amount of clean energy is one of the human dreams since the beginning of the modern society and nowadays is an urgency due to the climate changes that are becoming more and more frequents in the last decades. Fusion energy is one of the more credible candidates to satisfy such a dream and scientists are working on it for the last 60 years. Nuclear fusion is the most natural way to produce energy in the universe but not on the Earth where nuclear energy is obtained by using Fission, the opposite process where atoms are broken instead of fused. Indeed, what is a natural process in the stars, in which plasma is confined by gravity, seem to be very hard to reproduce in the Earth.
This summer scientists from the Livermore National Laboratory went very close to demonstrate nuclear fusion on the Earth. Indeed, at the National Ignition Facility (NIF) they were able to convert more than 70% of laser energy into nuclear energy, result never reached so far. This step forward renews the hope in the laser-fusion community to finally reach one of the more ambitious dreams of our society: ‘the establishment of the first nuclear reactor for civil energy’. The path for reach such goal is still long and full of scientific and technological milestones to be fulfilled but it is a matter of fact that on of the more relevant milestones has been reached this summer.
The hope is flaring up again.
What is laser-fusion?
Confining plasma to reach nuclear fusion can be done in several ways but the most trustable approaches are based on magnetic fields and/or laser pulses confinement schemes. Both approaches aim to reproduce the Sun interior conditions which fix the value of plasma density and time of confinement, necessary in order to start nuclear fusion reaction. In the magnetic confinement fusion approach (Wikipedia description) confinement time is of the order of tens of seconds with plasma densities up to 1E+14 particles per cubic centimetres while in laser fusion approach (Wikipedia description) the confinement time is extremely short, around few nano seconds (one nanosecond is equal to one billionth of seconds) and plasma densities are extremely high, around 1E+23 particles per cubic centimetres.
Laser-Fusion approach can be represented as made by three steps:
- Firstly, 192 laser pulses are focused in the internal wall of a cylindrical cavity in order to produce soft X-rays distribution converging toward the centre of the geometrical centre if the cavity
- Then, the X-rays distribution irradiates a millimetric spherical plastic ball filled with a mixture of Deuterium and Tritium (isotopes of Hydrogen) by inducing the explosion of the internal fuel according to the action-reaction Newton principle
- Finally, during the implosion the radius of the sphere reduces and consequently the fuel density and temperature increase up to thousands of time the solid density and up to hundreds-millions degrees of temperature. These are the necessary conditions for nuclear fusion. The laser induced micrometric nuclear fusion reaction that is supposed to produce an amount of energy greater than the one used for the process
Such laser-fusion experiments are possible in principle only in two laboratories in the world: the NIF in Livermore (USA) and the Laser Mega Joules -LMJ- in Bordeaux (France); both laboratories depend on the ministries of Defense with a small percentage, around 20%, of experimental access for civil applications. The NIF is in operation mode since 2009 and the LMJ started partial operation the last years and will be fully operative in a couple of years.
Laser-fusion research made a relevant step forward this summer with the fantastic experimental results communicated by our US colleagues working at the NIF in Livermore. Indeed, Sunday the 8th of August, 2021 an impressive result has been obtained with a final energy gain of more than 1.3 MJ of energy obtained as the result of nuclear fusion. Considering and inertial laser energy of 1.8 MJ this means a final gain of around 0.70, very close to 1 with an improvement from the last best result by a factor of x8. Waiting for a more detailed report it is clear that, if confirmed, such results demonstrate that nuclear fusion called on the Earth has been obtained without any doubts.
Why this result is important for CLPU?
Demonstration of nuclear fusion induced by lasers was a driving force for the development of high-power laser technology in the last decades. The PW VEGA system at CLPU is currently the most powerful laser in Spain and among the first in EU. Extreme state of matter and particle beam are routinely generated with VEGA and several experiments has been performed in the last years since the laser has been operating. Laser-fusion research is part of the scientific programme at CLPU where a dedicated experiment led by L. Volpe was performed in 2020 with the aim to study the ion stopping power in Warm Dense Matter (WDM). The excellent results of the experiments are important to understand how the ions deposit their energy in the plasma which is a key process in the nuclear fusion reaction. In addition, the high repetition-rate of VEGA is important to study diagnostic and targetry related to laser-fusion in view of a necessary extension of the mode of working from single shot (At NIF they can do one shot per day now) to several shots per seconds which is the requirement for building a nuclear reactor.
