Generation of strongly coupled plasma using Argon-based capillary discharge lasers

Andrew K. Rossall; Valentin Aslanyan; Sarah Wilson; Gregory J. Tallents

doi:10.1117/12.2188009

22 September 2015 Generation of strongly coupled plasma using Argon-based capillary discharge lasers

Andrew K. Rossall, Valentin Aslanyan, Sarah Wilson, Gregory J. Tallents

Proceedings Volume 9589, X-Ray Lasers and Coherent X-Ray Sources: Development and Applications XI; 95890C (2015) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2188009
Event: SPIE Optical Engineering + Applications, 2015, San Diego, California, United States

Abstract

Argon based capillary discharge lasers operate in the extreme ultra violet (EUV) at 46.9 nm with an output of up to 0.5 mJ energy per pulse and up to a 10 Hz repetition rate. Focussed irradiances of up to 10¹² W cm^-2 are achievable and can be used to generate plasma in the warm dense matter regime by irradiating solid material. To model the interaction between such an EUV laser and solid material, the 2D radiative-hydrodynamic code POLLUX has been modified to include absorption via direct photo-ionisation, a super-configuration model to describe the ionisation dependant electronic configurations and a calculation of plasma refractive indices for ray tracing of the incident EUV laser radiation. A simulation study is presented, demonstrating how capillary discharge lasers of 1.2ns pulse duration can be used to generate strongly coupled plasma at close to solid density with temperatures of a few eV and energy densities up to 1×10⁵ J cm^-3. Plasmas produced by EUV laser irradiation are shown to be useful for examining the equation-of-state properties of warm dense matter. One difficulty with this technique is the reduction of the strong temperature and density gradients which are produced during the interaction. Methods to inhibit and control these gradients will be examined.

Citation Download Citation

Andrew K. Rossall, Valentin Aslanyan, Sarah Wilson, and Gregory J. Tallents "Generation of strongly coupled plasma using Argon-based capillary discharge lasers", Proc. SPIE 9589, X-Ray Lasers and Coherent X-Ray Sources: Development and Applications XI, 95890C (22 September 2015); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2188009

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