Observations of enhanced Thomson scattering

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Abstract
The optical spectrum of scattered laser radiation from laser‐produced plasmas has been measured between half and twice the incident laser frequency ω0. Three spectral bands have been found, two of which straddle the 3ω0/2 spectrum. The third band is located near ω0/2. These observations can be successfully interpreted in terms of a model in which there is enhanced Thomson scattering into the ‘‘electron line.’’ This enhancement is due to fast electrons creating a local bump‐on‐tail instability [Phys. Rev. Lett. 5 3, 1912 (1984)]. An alternative interpretation in terms of the conventional stimulated Raman scattering and associated anti‐Stokes radiation is inconsistent with our observations.