Laser accelerated heavy particles – Tailoring of ion beams on a nano-scale

Intense lasers of femtosecond pulse duration are known to be drivers for intense electron and ion beams. Those beams, generated at laser intensities exceeding 10 19 W/cm 2 , are known to have unique characteristics and are therefore a subject of intense research world wide. Recently, the parameters of laser driven ion beams have been measured using new methods and it has been demonstrated, that beam patterns on a nanometer scale can be generated and propagated over long distances. We report on recent results and prospects for future application with special respect to further laser developments.