11 research outputs found
Magnetized Fast Isochoric Laser Heating for Efficient Creation of Ultra-High-Energy-Density States
The quest for the inertial confinement fusion (ICF) ignition is a grand
challenge, as exemplified by extraordinary large laser facilities. Fast
isochoric heating of a pre-compressed plasma core with a high-intensity
short-pulse laser is an attractive and alternative approach to create
ultra-high-energy-density states like those found in ICF ignition sparks. This
avoids the ignition quench caused by the hot spark mixing with the surrounding
cold fuel, which is the crucial problem of the currently pursued ignition
scheme. High-intensity lasers efficiently produce relativistic electron beams
(REB). A part of the REB kinetic energy is deposited in the core, and then the
heated region becomes the hot spark to trigger the ignition. However, only a
small portion of the REB collides with the core because of its large
divergence. Here we have demonstrated enhanced laser-to-core energy coupling
with the magnetized fast isochoric heating. The method employs a
kilo-tesla-level magnetic field that is applied to the transport region from
the REB generation point to the core which results in guiding the REB along the
magnetic field lines to the core. 7.7 1.3 % of the maximum coupling was
achieved even with a relatively small radial area density core (
0.1 g/cm). The guided REB transport was clearly visualized in a
pre-compressed core by using Cu- imaging technique. A simplified
model coupled with the comprehensive diagnostics yields 6.2\% of the coupling
that agrees fairly with the measured coupling. This model also reveals that an
ignition-scale areal density core ( 0.4 g/cm) leads to much
higher laser-to-core coupling ( 15%), this is much higher than that achieved
by the current scheme
Laboratory study on outflow jet formation via semi-relativistic magnetic reconnection with high-intensity laser
Design of Zeeman spectroscopy experiment with magnetized silicon plasma generated in the laboratory
Laser astrophysics experiment on the amplification of magnetic fields by shock-induced interfacial instabilities
International audienceLaser experiments are becoming established as tools for astronomical research that complement observations and theoretical modeling. Localized strong magnetic fields have been observed at a shock front of supernova explosions. Experimental confirmation and identification of the physical mechanism for this observation are of great importance in understanding the evolution of the interstellar medium. However, it has been challenging to treat the interaction between hydrodynamic instabilities and an ambient magnetic field in the laboratory. Here, we developed an experimental platform to examine magnetized Richtmyer-Meshkov instability (RMI). The measured growth velocity was consistent with the linear theory, and the magnetic-field amplification was correlated with RMI growth. Our experiment validated the turbulent amplification of magnetic fields associated with the shock-induced interfacial instability in astrophysical conditions. Experimental elucidation of fundamental processes in magnetized plasmas is generally essential in various situations such as fusion plasmas and planetary sciences