BEETLE – Ultrashort pulse lasers for the industrial application of laser plasma accelerators

Laser-based secondary radiation is becoming an increasingly significant key technology for Germany as a centre for industry and innovation. Femtosecond lasers that can be implemented in industry and are simultaneously energy-efficient and also have a high average power. These lasers enable the scaled use of secondary beam sources. This opens up a wide range of potential applications, including targeted and effective tumour therapy in the medical field, as well as in drug development and the examinations of various materials.

The BEETLE project is a collaboration between DESY, TRUMPF Scientific Lasers GmbH + Co, Active Fibre Systems GmbH, the University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf and the affiliated partner Fehrmann GmbH. The aim of the project is to accelerate the development of this technology to market maturity. The innovation is based on the additional reduction of the pulse length (compression) of established industrial ytterbium-based ultrashort pulse lasers from pulse durations of several 100 to a mere 10 femtoseconds. A new method, for which a patent application is to be filed, allows this pulse compression to be achieved in a particularly compact space, making it suitable for practical applications without compromising the other favourable properties of ytterbium lasers. The aim is to expedite the market entry of laser plasma acceleration and its applications in radiological medicine.

The project is being funded as part of the “Novel Photonic Tools for Industry and Society - Laser-based High-energy Beam Sources” programme set up by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), amounting to a total of EUR 7.8 million (60.6 percent of which will come from the BMBF). The BMBF is providing this funding with a view to supporting the transfer of innovative research results in the field of photonics as a key technology, thereby making an important contribution to innovation and competitiveness, as well as to meeting challenges facing society in the areas of health, digitalisation and sustainability.

The BEETLE project is an excellent example of how different companies can benefit from working directly with research centres. The Hi-Acts innovation platform specifically seeks to initiate such collaborations made up of various players along the value chain. The partners involved in BEETLE, TRUMPF, the UKE and Fehrmann, are all part of the innovation platform, which focuses on laser plasma accelerators as a key technology.

The objectives of the BEETLE project perfectly complement the energy stability that the Hi-Acts Technology Lab “(Novel) Compact Laser Plasma Accelerators” is striving for and that is particularly important for commercial applications. Hi-Acts provides a unique environment for joint piloting and feedback/exchange through the Technology Lab, which pools technological expertise, and through its growing industry network, which brings together dedicated industry expertise from a wide range of sectors. This can result in large-scale projects such as BEETLE as a holistic strategy for innovation. BEETLE is therefore a prime example of the acceleration of transfer which Hi-Acts is striving for.

Innovation.Accelerated.