Oxford Centre for High Energy Density Science (OxCHEDS)

Abstract:

The currents induced by arbitrarily strong dc electric fields in plasma and the evolution of electron distributions have been studied by Fokker-Planck simulations. We find that the electron distributions evolve distinctly under different fields; especially, the electron distribution is well represented by the sum of a stationary and drifting Maxwellian at the moderate field. A set of hydrodynamiclike equations, similar to Spitzer's but without the weak-field limit, is given for calculating the current. It is more suitable for application in hybrid particle-in-cell simulations and may extend plasma transport theory in models that do not employ a kinetic description of the electrons. © 2008 The American Physical Society.

Abstract:

We have characterized the plasma produced by a picosecond laser pulse using x-ray spectroscopy. High-resolution high-sensitivity spectra of K -shell emission from a Ti plasma have been obtained, showing a strong contribution from multiply ionized ions. Hydrodynamic and collisional-radiative codes are used to extract the plasma temperature and density from these measurements. We show that our measurements can provide benchmarks for particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations of preplasma conditions in ultraintense laser-matter interactions.

Abstract:

We have studied the picosecond lattice dynamics of optically pumped hexagonal LuMnO3 by using ultrafast x-ray diffraction. The results show a shift and broadening of the diffraction curve due to the stimulated lattice expansion. To understand the transient response of the lattice, the measured time- and angle-resolved diffraction curves are compared to a theoretical calculation based on the dynamical diffraction theory of coherent phonon propagation modified for the hexagonal crystal structure of LuMnO3. Our simulations reveal that a large coupling coefficient (c13) between the a-b plane and the c axis is required to fit the data. Though we interpret the transient response within the framework of thermal coherent phonons, we do not exclude the possibility of strong nonthermal coupling of the electronic excitation to the atomic framework. We compare this result to our previous coherent phonon studies of LuMnO3 in which we used optical pump-probe spectroscopy. © 2008 The American Physical Society.