Towards hot solid-density plasmas with ultra-high-intensity sub-picosecond lasers

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
We discuss the various regimes of interaction of a sub-picosecond laser pulse with solid matter that we are exploring with the table top terawatt laser system at the Institut national de la recherche scientifique. The Li-like satellite spectrum (1s2l2l′-1s22l) is used to study (i) the nonstationary and non-Maxwellian physics when the density gradient scale length is large compared with the laser wavelength, and (ii) the transition towards the physics of solid-density plasmas at the local thermodynamical equilibrium when the gradient scale length is ultrashort. We emphasize some exciting perspectives of this new physics and in particular we discuss the generation of hot solid-density plasmas that may have a strong impact in many different areas such as astrophysics, atomic physics, chemistry, and inertial confinement fusion.

This publication has 0 references indexed in Scilit: