Professor Steven Rose

Abstract:

The construction of short-pulse tunable soft x-ray free electron laser sources based on the self-amplified spontaneous emission process will provide a major advance in capability for dense plasma-related and warm dense matter (WDM) research. The sources will provide 10¹³ photons in a 200-fs duration pulse that is tunable from approximately 6 to 100 nm. Here we discuss only two of the many applications made possible for WDM that has been severely hampered by the fact that laser-based methods have been unavailable because visible light will not propagate at electron densities of ne ≥ 10²²cm^-3. The next-generation light sources will remove these restrictions. © 2003 Optical Society of America.

Abstract:

The Vulvan Nd:glass laser at the Central Laser Facility (CLF) has recently been upgraded to the Petawatt level (1015 Watts). The three year upgrade project was contracted to deliver 500 J in a near diffraction limited pulse of 500 fs duration. The Petawatt facility will deliver an irradiance on target of 1021 W.cm-2 for a wide ranging experimental programme in fundamental physics and advanced applications. This includes the interaction of super-high intensity light with matter, fast ignition fusion research, photon induced nuclear reactions, electron and ion acceleration by light waves and the exploration of the exotic world of plasma physics dominated by relativity. Of particular relevance to high speed photography, the Petawatt beam will be used to create a source for advanced high-speed imaging using protons, neutrons and X-rays on an hitherto inaccessible time-scale.

Abstract:

The construction of short pulse (<200 fs) tunable X-ray laser sources based on the X-ray free electron laser (XFEL) concept will be a watershed for plasma-based and warm dense matter research. These new fourth generation light sources will have extremely high fields and short wavelengths (&SIM;0.1 nm) with peak spectral brightnesses 10(10) greater than third generation sources. Further, the high intensity upgrade of the GSI accelerator facilities will lead to specific energy depositions up to 200 kJ/g and temperatures between 1 and 10 eV at almost solid-state densities, enabling interesting experiments in the regime of nonideal plasmas, such as the evolution of intense ion beams in the interior of a Jovian planet. Below we discuss several applications: the creation of warm dense matter (WDM) research, probing of near solid density plasmas, and laser-plasma spectroscopy of ions in plasmas. The study of dense plasmas has been severely hampered by the fact that laser-based methods have been unavailable and these new fourth generation sources will remove these restrictions.