Studies of Shock-Front Non-Uniformities in Wetted Foams with the OMEGA High-Resolution Velocimeter (OHRV)

Foams printed using 2-Photon Polymerization (2PP) and wetted with liquid fuel provide a promising new target platform for understanding target degradation mechanisms in inertial confinement fusion (ICF) implosions. These wetted foam targets are quicker to produce than solid ice layered targets, enabling rapid fielding of dense-fuel implosions. Experimental characterization of wetted foams to benchmark simulations is vital to the development of this target technology. Using OMEGA's Capseed Campaign platform, planar shocks were propagated through DD-wetted foams, and the transmitted shock fronts were imaged with the OHRV. The shock-front nonuniformities and hydrodynamic instabilities seeded by various wetted foam samples were quantified, characterizing the impact of varying pore structures, densities, and thicknesses. Preliminary data analysis allows for the benchmarking of HYDRA simulations of wetted foams via the timing of shock breakouts, and demonstrates the spatial imprint and velocity nonuniformity of shock fronts seeded by various foam structures and densities. Further OMEGA experiments, planned for November, will provide a more complete understanding of whether wetted foams may prove to be a tunable platform for investigating hydrodynamic instabilities in ICF implosions.