Generating Proton Energy Spectra for Space Environment Tests with Laser Driven Accelerators (September 2021)

Conventional accelerators can produce monoenergetic particles to perform radiation tests for electronic components and materials, which are used in space. All components must be tested by several particle beams with different energies in the range of that it will be subjected to in space, which increase the cost to determine the radiation hardness of these components. Therefore, this is a difficult scenario to mimic with conventional accelerators [1].Fortunately, laser driven accelerators (LDAs) are capable of robust generation of particle beams composed of electrons, protons, neutrons, and ions, as well as photons. Wide range and energy of particles can be produced simultaneously from this system and can mimic the space radiation environment. By using LDA systems, the impact of space radiation on space electronics can be tested in a small laboratory compared to conventional accelerators [2].In this study, only proton spectrum produced from a selected LDA was compared with the proton flux in different orbits in space despite the fact that there are different types of particle radiation in space. Proton energy spectra for four typical orbits were obtained from the SPENVIS program and the proton energy spectrum produced by a laser driven accelerator system was generated in an EPOCH 2D simulation.