lasnex simulations of the classical and laser-driven Rayleigh-Taylor instability

We present the results of two-dimensional l a s n e x simulations of the classical and laser-driven Rayleigh-Taylor instability. Our growth rates and eigenmodes for classical two- and three-fluid problems agree closely with the exact analytic expressions. We illustrate in several examples how perturbations feed through from one interface to another. For targets driven by a 1/4-μm laser at I=2×${10}^{14}$ W/${\mathrm{cm}}^2$ our growth rates are 40–80 % of the classical case rates for wavelengths between 5 and 100 μm. We find that radiation transport has a stabilizing effect on the Rayleigh-Taylor instability, particularly at high intensities. A brief comparison with a laser-driven experiment is also presented.