Simultaneous PW-scale laser driven MeV X-ray and neutron beam characterization for dual radiography capability

I. Cohen; W. Yao; N. Mirkovic; P. Antici; G. Auge; P. -G. Bleotu; T. Catabi; S. N. Chen; A. Ciardi; F. Condamine; E. d`Humieres; Q. Ducasse; G. Fauvel; R. Gambicchia; G. Giubega; L. Gremillet; M. Gugiu; V. Iancu; R. Leli`evre; L. T. Mix; Y. Ristic; D. Sangwan; M. Sheats; F. Trompier; L. Tudor; S. Turiel; G. Verstraeten; T. Vinchon; I. Pomerantz; O. Tesileanu; J. Fuchs

arXiv · 2604.15365

Simultaneous PW-scale laser driven MeV X-ray and neutron beam characterization for dual radiography capability

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Abstract

Laser-driven, high-brilliance secondary sources (electrons, ions, neutrons, X-rays) open new perspectives for compact material probing and imaging of high-speed events. A key advantage is their ability to perform multiplexed probing, as these sources are generated simultaneously in a single shot using a single laser beam. Here, we report the first quantitative measurements of photon spectra (0.1--100 MeV) and angular distributions in the petawatt interaction regime, using an ultra-intense ($>10^{21}\,\rm W/cm^2$), ultra-short (24~fs) laser pulse. These results are complemented by the characterization of simultaneously produced MeV neutrons. We demonstrate that these neutrons, once moderated, can enable in-depth material identification via resonance transmission analysis. This work highlights the potential of compact, ultrashort-pulse PW lasers for dual neutron and X-ray radiography of dense materials.

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I. Cohen, W. Yao, N. Mirkovic, P. Antici, G. Auge, P. -G. Bleotu, T. Catabi, S. N. Chen, A. Ciardi, F. Condamine, E. d`Humieres, Q. Ducasse, G. Fauvel, R. Gambicchia, G. Giubega, L. Gremillet, M. Gugiu, V. Iancu, R. Leli`evre, L. T. Mix, Y. Ristic, D. Sangwan, M. Sheats, F. Trompier, L. Tudor, S. Turiel, G. Verstraeten, T. Vinchon, I. Pomerantz, O. Tesileanu, J. Fuchs. 2026-04-14. Simultaneous PW-scale laser driven MeV X-ray and neutron beam characterization for dual radiography capability. https://arxiv.org/abs/2604.15365

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