Swift ion plasma interaction experiments at Erlangen

A new target area has been set up at the Tandem accelerator in Erlangen to investigate the interaction of ions with plasmas. The Erlangen–Tandem accelerator provides medium- and light-ion beams (p, He, C, O, Cu) at moderate particle energies of 1–30 MeV. This energy range is especially useful to study the interaction of ions with ionized matter close to the maximum of energy loss in a plasma. Experiments using the variable energy of the Tandem provide for the first time energy-dependant stopping power data close to this maximum. First results have been obtained for a Cu beam at 4–10 MeV particle energy yielding a stopping power between 1310 and 1060 MeV/(mg/cm2) in a hydrogen plasma. The measured stopping power of Cu in cold hydrogen gas varies between 31 and 65 MeV/(mg/cm2) in this energy range.