Stable GeV Ion-Beam Acceleration from Thin Foils by Circularly Polarized Laser Pulses

A stable relativistic ion acceleration regime for thin foils irradiated by circularly polarized laser pulses is suggested. In this regime, the 'light-sail' stage of radiation pressure acceleration for ions is smoothly connected with the initial relativistic 'hole-boring' stage, and a defined relationship between laser intensity I0, foil density n0, and thickness l0 should be satisfied. For foils with a wide range of n0, the required I0 and l0 for the regime are theoretically estimated and verified with the particle-in-cell code ILLUMINATION. It is shown for the first time by 2D simulations that high-density monoenergetic ion beams with energy above GeV/u and divergence of 10 deg. are produced by circularly polarized lasers at intensities of 1022 W/cm2, which are within reach of current laser systems