Laser accelerated ion beams for future medical applications

Recent success in laser-driven particle acceleration has increased interest in laser-generated “accelerator-quality” beams, for example, protons and ions have been produced with up to several tens of MeV per nucleon, and with extremely low emittance (<0.01 mm mrad, normalized). Compact, high-gradient laser-accelerators are therefore now being discussed as a potentially viable technology for a host of particle-beam applications, including future compact medical accelerators for medical diagnostics and therapy. After commissioning of a 150 TW laser system at the FZD, a joint research center for radiation therapy with laser-accelerator ions is being established together with the OncoRay Center for Radiation Research in Oncology, and the University Clinic of the Technical University of Dresden. The present status and future plans of the center, and the results from first proton acceleration experiments at FZD will be presented.