Imaging with GeV muons produced via laser-wakefield-accelerated electrons

M. Dobre; P. Ghenuche; A. Balaceanu; D. Catana; M. O. Cernaianu; D. Dorobantu; R. Lica; V. Malka; D. Martello; I. Mitu; M. Niculescu-Oglinzanu; L. Stan; D. Stanca; P. Tomassini; C. A. Ur; C. Vancea; A. Saftoiu; D. Doria

arXiv · 2609.28788

Imaging with GeV muons produced via laser-wakefield-accelerated electrons

M. Dobre·P. Ghenuche·A. Balaceanu·D. Catana·M. O. Cernaianu·D. Dorobantu·R. Lica·V. Malka·D. Martello·I. Mitu·M. Niculescu-Oglinzanu·L. Stan·D. Stanca·P. Tomassini·C. A. Ur·C. Vancea·A. Saftoiu·D. Doria

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Abstract

Artificially generated muon beams, with tunable parameters, are highly valuable in imaging objects that are opaque to any other scanning technique. Lower-energy muon beams are currently produced at accelerator facilities, while higher energies have only recently been observed as a result of the interaction of laser-wakefield-accelerated electrons and solid targets. This work focuses on using muography imaging detectors to measure the profile of a muon beam generated via the Bethe-Heitler process and to perform muon imaging in an experimental setup extending up to 42 meters from the muon source. By comparing the data with Monte Carlo simulations, we confirm that the measured beam profile and object imaging are consistent with artificially produced muons of energy of a few GeV. To our knowledge, this represents the first demonstration of imaging dominated by an artificial, laser-driven muon beam.

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M. Dobre, P. Ghenuche, A. Balaceanu, D. Catana, M. O. Cernaianu, D. Dorobantu, R. Lica, V. Malka, D. Martello, I. Mitu, M. Niculescu-Oglinzanu, L. Stan, D. Stanca, P. Tomassini, C. A. Ur, C. Vancea, A. Saftoiu, D. Doria. 2026-09-23. Imaging with GeV muons produced via laser-wakefield-accelerated electrons. https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.28788

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