Numerical investigations of heavy ion-driven plasma wakefield acceleration

Plasma-based acceleration (PBA) has emerged as a promising approach to achieve ultra-high gradient particle acceleration. While extensive PBA studies have been conducted using laser, electron, and proton drivers, significant challenges remain in achieving high efficiency, high-energy gain, and high beam quality. In contrast, due to the high beam charge density, large particle mass, and high kinetic energy, heavy ion beam drivers represent an interesting direction in PBA research. This paper presents the first investigation of plasma wakefield acceleration driven by a heavy ion beam. Using high-intensity and high-energy heavy ion beams provided by the high-intensity heavy-ion accelerator facility, our simulations show that heavy ions can excite plasma wakefields up to 6 GV/m and accelerate electrons from an initial 16–675 MeV, with an energy spread of 1.5%. These results indicate that heavy ion-driven plasma wakefield acceleration could become a promising approach for generating high energy, high-intensity bunches in single acceleration stage for future applications.