Studies of ion fluxes emitted from picosecond and nanosecond laser-produced plasmas

Energetic ions emitted from plasmas produced by the interaction of intense laser pulses with solid targets are currently a subject of growing interest due to the possibility of unique applications in accelerator technology, nuclear physics, material science and medicine. Depending on the kind of application, different parameters of the ion fluxes are required, and various conditions of laser-target interaction must be considered. In this paper, selected results of our recent studies of ion emission from plasmas produced by laser pulses of duration from ~ 1 ps to ~ 1 ns and of intensities from 10^10 W/cm^2 to 10^17 W/cm^2 are reviewed. The characteristics of both heavy ion fluxes emitted from massive high-Z targets and proton beams generated from thin foil targets of various structures are presented. Some basic properties of ion fluxes produced in various experimental conditions are discussed. The effect of external magnetic field on the ion emission is demonstrated.