Observation of Stagnation in Counter-Streaming Laser-Created Plasmas with Optical Thomson Scattering

ORAL

Abstract

We present optical Thomson scattering data from counter-streaming plasma jet experiments and argue that the observed slowing is due to stagnation. The jets were created on the OMEGA laser (Laboratory for Laser Energetics, Rochester, NY) by rear-irradiating thin acrylic cones. The resulting jets were probed with a 526.5 nm Thomson beam in both single jet and head-on configurations. From the single jet Thomson measurements, we determined that over the timeframe of 12 to 18 ns, mass density increased from 10^-7 to 10^-4 gm/cc while velocity fell from 300 to 100 km/s. Using these plasma parameters, we find that the interpenetration-to-stagnation transition occurred when the ion-ion mean free path was roughly 1 mm.

*This work is funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, through the NNSA-DS and SC-OFES Joint Program in High-Energy-Density Laboratory Plasmas, grant number DE-NA0002956, and the National Laser User Facility Program, grant number DE-NA0002719, and through the Laboratory for Laser Energetics, University of Rochester by the NNSA/OICF under Cooperative Agreement No. DE-NA0001944.

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Presenters

  • Rachel Young

    • Univ of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Authors

  • Rachel Young

    • Univ of Michigan - Ann Arbor

  • Carolyn C Kuranz

    • Univ of Michigan - Ann Arbor
    • University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109

  • Dustin H Froula

    • University of Rochester Laboratory for Laser Energetics
    • Univ of Rochester
    • Laboratory for Laser Energetics, U. of Rochester
    • Laboratory for Laser Energetics
    • Laboratory for Laser Energetics, University of Rochester
    • University of Rochester

  • J. Steven Steven Ross

    • Lawrence Livermore National Lab
    • Lawrence Livermore Natl Lab
    • Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

  • Sallee R. Klein

    • Univ of Michigan - Ann Arbor
    • University of Michigan