A method and apparatus for processing a particle shower using a laser-driven plasma is provided. The method comprises interacting a particle shower with a processing laser-driven plasma stage, the particle shower comprising at least one particle species, wherein the laser is a high-energy, ultra-short pulse laser. In some embodiments, the method comprises accelerating, decelerating, trapping, or collimating the at least one particle species in the processing laser-drive plasma stage. Particularly, the embodiments enable generating high energy particle beams that were only possible using accelerators spanning several hundred meters, in a space of a few meters.

A three-dimensional printing device includes a movable unit with a superconductor and a printing head arrangement for printing a printing material, a magnetic field generator adapted to generate a magnetic field, and a control device. The magnetic field generator and the movable unit are adapted for coupling in a force-locking manner by means of frozen magnetic flux, and the controlling device is adapted to control a magnetic field strength of the magnetic field generator.

A three-dimensional printing device includes a movable unit with a superconductor and a printing head arrangement for printing a printing material, a magnetic field generator adapted to generate a magnetic field, and a control device. The magnetic field generator and the movable unit are adapted for coupling in a force-locking manner by means of frozen magnetic flux, and the controlling device is adapted to control a magnetic field strength of the magnetic field generator.

A laser wake-field acceleration (LWFA)-based nuclear fission system and related techniques are disclosed. In accordance with some embodiments, the disclosed system may be configured to accelerate charged particles, such as protons, to velocities close to the speed of light utilizing LWFA. The system also may be configured, in accordance with some embodiments, to use these high-energy relativistic charged particles in causing nuclear fission of a given downstream fissionable target, thereby releasing large amounts of harvestable energy. Optionally, the system further may be configured, in accordance with some embodiments, to utilize charged particles resulting from the fission in producing electrical energy.

A laser wake-field acceleration (LWFA)-based nuclear fission system and related techniques are disclosed. In accordance with some embodiments, the disclosed system may be configured to accelerate charged particles, such as protons, to velocities close to the speed of light utilizing LWFA. The system also may be configured, in accordance with some embodiments, to use these high-energy relativistic charged particles in causing nuclear fission of a given downstream fissionable target, thereby releasing large amounts of harvestable energy. Optionally, the system further may be configured, in accordance with some embodiments, to utilize charged particles resulting from the fission in producing electrical energy.

A synchrocyclotron .[.comprises.]. .Iadd.includes .Iaddend.a resonant circuit that includes electrodes having a gap therebetween across the magnetic field. An oscillating voltage input, having a variable amplitude and frequency determined by a programmable digital waveform generator generates an oscillating electric field across the gap. The synchrocyclotron can include a variable capacitor in circuit with the electrodes to vary the resonant frequency. The synchrocyclotron can further include an injection electrode and an extraction electrode having voltages controlled by the programmable digital waveform generator. The synchrocyclotron can further include a beam monitor. The synchrocyclotron can detect resonant conditions in the resonant circuit by measuring the voltage .[.and or.]. .Iadd.and/or .Iaddend.current in the resonant circuit, driven by the input voltage, and adjust the capacitance of the variable capacitor or the frequency of the input voltage to maintain the resonant conditions. The programmable waveform generator can adjust at least one of the oscillating voltage input, the voltage on the injection electrode and the voltage on the extraction electrode according to beam intensity and in response to changes in resonant conditions.

An apparatus for guiding, in particular directing or accelerating, charged particles (50), comprising: a substrate (110) having a surface (115); an optically thinner layer (120) formed on the surface (115); an inhomogeneous channel (130) which is formed by two mutually opposite delimiting structures on a side of the layer (120) that is opposite the substrate (110); and a radiation device which is designed to generate at least one pulsed laser beam (140) and inject the at least one pulsed laser beam (140) into the channel (130) from a side that is opposite the optically thinner layer (120). The layer (120) for the laser beam (140) is optically thin, and the delimiting structures have a high optical density in comparison with the layer (120). The delimiting structures are designed to guide the particles (50) by means of the laser beam (140) in the channel (130) and alternatingly focus them along the channel (130) and in at least one direction perpendicular to the channel (130).

An apparatus for guiding, in particular directing or accelerating, charged particles (50), comprising: a substrate (110) having a surface (115); an optically thinner layer (120) formed on the surface (115); an inhomogeneous channel (130) which is formed by two mutually opposite delimiting structures on a side of the layer (120) that is opposite the substrate (110); and a radiation device which is designed to generate at least one pulsed laser beam (140) and inject the at least one pulsed laser beam (140) into the channel (130) from a side that is opposite the optically thinner layer (120). The layer (120) for the laser beam (140) is optically thin, and the delimiting structures have a high optical density in comparison with the layer (120). The delimiting structures are designed to guide the particles (50) by means of the laser beam (140) in the channel (130) and alternatingly focus them along the channel (130) and in at least one direction perpendicular to the channel (130).

Conventional cyclotrons have been incapable of changing energy of a beam to be extracted. Conventional synchrotrons have been difficult to output beams in a continuous manner. An accelerator has a dense region dense region in which orbits of different energies densely gather as a result of using a radiofrequency electric field to accelerate an ion orbiting in an isochronous magnetic field in order to cause a beam orbit to be displaced in a specific direction with increasing acceleration, and a sparse region in which orbits of different energies are sparsely discrete from each other. The accelerator has a feature that a magnetic field has a magnetic field gradient in a radial direction of a beam orbit in the dense region, and a product of a gradient of magnetic field gradient and a beam size passing through the dense region becomes smaller than the magnetic field gradient.

Conventional cyclotrons have been incapable of changing energy of a beam to be extracted. Conventional synchrotrons have been difficult to output beams in a continuous manner. An accelerator has a dense region dense region in which orbits of different energies densely gather as a result of using a radiofrequency electric field to accelerate an ion orbiting in an isochronous magnetic field in order to cause a beam orbit to be displaced in a specific direction with increasing acceleration, and a sparse region in which orbits of different energies are sparsely discrete from each other. The accelerator has a feature that a magnetic field has a magnetic field gradient in a radial direction of a beam orbit in the dense region, and a product of a gradient of magnetic field gradient and a beam size passing through the dense region becomes smaller than the magnetic field gradient.