The CLF’s Gemini laser, a dual beam system delivering up to 15 J of laser energy in 40 fs in each beam, was originally proposed in 2003 and commissioned for its first experiment in 2008. Since then, it has hosted almost 30 experimental campaigns delivering up to 1021 W/cm2 light intensity for high energy density plasma research. From mimicking the remnants of supernova explosions to driving micro-accelerator structures in plasma bubbles that are a fraction of the width of a human hair, Gemini has enabled unique experimental configurations that have advanced many fields of plasma research.

To name but a few of the most notable, the first ever Gemini experiment back in 2008 demonstrated near-GeV electron acceleration by driving the laser pulse into a high pressure jet of gas, producing results that were published in the journal Physical Review Letters (link opens in a new window) and is one of RAL’s most successful papers with over 150 citations already. Later came work that focused on the betatron X-ray emission of laser-driven electron acceleration that demonstrated, in results published in Nature Physics (link opens in a new window), that photon energies in the MeV range are achievable when a resonance regime is reached. Gemini has even been used to realise Einstein’s ‘flying mirror’ experiment in a paper published in Nature Communications (link opens in a new window), proving that the great physicist was right in his predictions of pulse compression and energy upshift when an intense light pulse is reflected from a ‘mirror’ moving at relativistic velocities.

100,000th shot fired on Friday 14^th March 2014

The Gemini system receives continued laser research and development in order to maintain high quality beams, better pulse compression and improved focal spot quality, through the incorporation adaptive optics. Improvements in the laser intensity contrast to its present high level of 10¹¹ alongside the installation of a permanent double plasma mirror system into the target chamber ensures a steep plasma profile during laser matter interactions, which is crucial to most of the experiments that are carried out on the system.

We hope you agree with Operations Manager Steve Hawkes on Gemini’s bright future with his reaction to the 100,000th shot; “100000 shots! Here’s to 100000 more!”