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E896 has measured Lambda production in 11.6A GeV/c Au-Au collisions over virtually the whole rapidity phase space. The midrapidity p(t) distributions have been measured for the first time at this energy and appear to indicate that the Lambda hyperons have different freeze-out conditions than protons. A comparison with the relativistic quantum molecular dynamics model shows that while there is good shape agreement at high rapidity the model predicts significantly different slopes of the m(t) spectra at midrapidity. The data, where overlap occurs, are consistent with previously reported measurements.

Laser wakefield acceleration (LWFA) technology has evolved to where it should be evaluated for its potential as a future competitor to existing technology that produces electron and x-ray beams. The purpose of the present work is to investigate the dosimetric properties of an electron beam that should be achievable using existing LWFA technology, and to document the necessary improvements to make radiotherapy application for LWFA viable. This paper first qualitatively reviews the fundamental principles of LWFA and describes a potential design for a 30 cm accelerator chamber containing a gas target. Electron beam energy spectra, upon which our dose calculations are based, were obtained from a uniform energy distribution and from two-dimensional particle-in-cell (2D PIC) simulations. The 2D PIC simulation parameters are consistent with those reported by a previous LWFA experiment. According to the 2D PIC simulations, only approximately 0.3% of the LWFA electrons are emitted with an energy greater than 1 MeV. We studied only the high-energy electrons to determine their potential for clinical electron beams of central energy from 9 to 21 MeV. Each electron beam was broadened and flattened by designing a dual scattering foil system to produce a uniform beam (103%>off-axis ratio>95%) over a 25 x 25 cm2 field. An energy window (deltaE) ranging from 0.5 to 6.5 MeV was selected to study central-axis depth dose, beam flatness, and dose rate. Dose was calculated in water at a 100 cm source-to-surface distance using the EGS/BEAM Monte Carlo algorithm. Calculations showed that the beam flatness was fairly insensitive to deltaE. However, since the falloff of the depth-dose curve (R10-R90) and the dose rate both increase with deltaE, a tradeoff between minimizing (R10-R90) and maximizing dose rate is implied. If deltaE is constrained so that R10-R90 is within 0.5 cm of its value for a monoenergetic beam, the maximum practical dose rate based on 2D PIC is approximately 0.1 Gy min(-1) for a 9 MeV beam and 0.03 Gy min(-1) for a 15 MeV beam. It was concluded that current LWFA technology should allow a table-top terawatt (T3) laser to produce therapeutic electron beams that have acceptable flatness, penetration, and falloff of depth dose; however, the dose rate is still 1%-3% of that which would be acceptable, especially for higher-energy electron beams. Further progress in laser technology, e.g., increasing the pulse repetition rate or number of high energy electrons generated per pulse, is necessary to give dose rates acceptable for electron beams. Future measurements confirming dosimetric calculations are required to substantiate our results. In addition to achieving adequate dose rate, significant engineering developments are needed for this technology to compete with current electron acceleration technology. Also, the functional benefits of LWFA electron beams require further study and evaluation.

The laser wakefield acceleration (LWFA) mechanism can accelerate electrons to energies within the 6-20 MeV range desired for therapy application. However, the energy spectrum of LWFA-generated electrons is broad, on the order of tens of MeV. Using existing laser technology, the therapeutic beam might require a significant energy spread to achieve clinically acceptable dose rates. The purpose of this work was to test the assumption that a scattering foil system designed for a mono-energetic beam would be suitable for a poly-energetic beam with a significant energy spread. Dual scattering foil systems were designed for mono-energetic beams using an existing analytical formalism based on Gaussian multiple-Coulomb scattering theory. The design criterion was to create a flat beam that would be suitable for fields up to 25 x 25 cm2 at 100 cm from the primary scattering foil. Radial planar fluence profiles for poly-energetic beams with energy spreads ranging from 0.5 MeV to 6.5 MeV were calculated using two methods: (a) analytically by summing beam profiles for a range of mono-energetic beams through the scattering foil system, and (b) by Monte Carlo using the EGS/BEAM code. The analytic calculations facilitated fine adjustments to the foil design, and the Monte Carlo calculations enabled us to verify the results of the analytic calculation and to determine the phase-space characteristics of the broadened beam. Results showed that the flatness of the scattered beam is fairly insensitive to the width of the input energy spectrum. Also, results showed that dose calculated by the analytical and Monte Carlo methods agreed very well in the central portion of the beam. Outside the useable field area, the differences between the analytical and Monte Carlo results were small but significant, possibly due to the small angle approximation. However, these did not affect the conclusion that a scattering foil system designed for a mono-energetic beam will be suitable for a poly-energetic beam with the same central energy. Further studies of the dosimetric properties of LWFA-generated electron beams will be done using Monte Carlo methods.

We have measured the production of light nuclei (Aр3) in 11.6 GeV/c Au-Au collisions at the Brookhaven Alternating Gradient Synchrotron ͑AGS͒. The transverse mass spectra are analyzed using a thermal fireball model, and the yields for different particle species are discussed assuming coalescence and fragmentation as possible production mechanisms. The wide acceptance range of the 3 He measurements permits a broad study of the coalescence parameter B 3 as functions of transverse momentum and rapidity. Comparisons with data obtained previously at AGS energies suggest that the simple models are insufficient to describe fully the production mechanisms of light nuclei.