Intense high-quality medical proton beams via laser fields

Simulations based on the coupled relativistic equations of motion show that protons stemming from laser-plasma processes can be efficiently post-accelerated employing pulsed laser beams in different configurations focused to spot radii on the order of the laser wavelength. We demonstrate that the laser fields produce quasi-monoenergetic accelerated protons with kinetic energies exceeding 200 MeV, small energy spreads of about 1% and high densities as required for hadron cancer therapy. To our knowledge, this is the first scheme allowing for this important application based on an all-optical set-up.