Time of Flight diagnostic in laser-driven ion acceleration for ICF studies

This article provides a concise overview on the basic applications of Time-of-Flight (ToF) detectors as online diagnostic tools in laser-matter interaction experiments leading to the acceleration of protons and heavier ions. The focus is placed on the use of ToF diagnostics for real-time characterization of ion emission, including energy spectra, cut-off energies, fluence and angular distributions. Through representative experimental examples, the article highlights the role of ToF measurements in probing the spatial structure of the accelerating fields and in supporting the optimization of laser-driven ion acceleration experiments