Demonstration of repetitive energetic proton generation by ultra-intense laser interaction with a tape target

High power laser systems are an attractive driver for compact energetic ion sources. We demonstrate repetitive
acceleration at 0.1 Hz of proton beams up to 40 MeV from a reeled tape target irradiated by ultra-high intensities
up to 5 × 1021 Wcm 2 and laser energies ≈ 15 J using the J-KAREN-P laser system. We investigate the stability
of the source and its behaviour with laser spot focal size. We compare the scaling of proton energy with laser
energy to a recently developed analytical model, and also demonstrate that it is possible to reach energies up to
50 MeV on a single shot with a lower laser energy ≈ 10 J by using a thinner target, motivating development of
high repetition targetry suitable for thinner targets.