Magnetized jet creation using a hollow ring of laser beams

We report results of magnetized jet creation experiment using the Omega laser. Using 20 Omega beams to irradiate a flat plastic target in a hollow ring pattern, we demonstrated that the on-axis electron and ion density, temperature and velocity are higher than when all beams are focused onto a single spot. The jet created by the hollow ring laser is also more collimated. Proton radiography was used to probe the magnetic field in the jet. Proton images show ordered quasi-linear filaments whose divergence decreases with increasing ring radius. Proton density contrasts are consistent with filamentary field bundles with peak values in the tens of Teslas. These results demonstrate that magnetized jets created by a hollow ring of laser beams can become a versatile new platform for laboratory astrophysics.