Oxford Centre for High Energy Density Science (OxCHEDS)

Abstract:

The study of parametric instabilities has played a crucial role in understanding energy transfer to plasma and, with that, the development of key applications such as inertial confinement fusion. When the densities are between 0.11n_{c}≲n_{e}≲0.14n_{c} and the electron temperature is in inertial confinement fusion-relevant temperatures, anomalous hot electrons with kinetic energies above 100keV are generated. Here a new electron acceleration mechanism-the anti-Stokes Langmuir decay instability cascade of forward stimulated Raman scattering-is investigated. This mechanism potentially explains anomalous energetic electron generation in indirectly driven inertial confinement fusion experiments, it also provides a new way of accelerating electrons to higher energy for applications such as novel x-ray sources.

Abstract:

When compressed, a metallic specimen will generally experience changes to its crystallographic texture due to plasticity-induced rotation. Ultrafast x-ray diffraction techniques make it possible to measure rotation of this kind in targets dynamically compressed over nanosecond timescales to the kind of pressures ordinarily encountered in planetary interiors. The axis and the extent of the local rotation can provide hints as to the combination of plasticity mechanisms activated by the rapid uniaxial compression, thus providing valuable information about the underlying dislocation kinetics operative during extreme loading conditions. We present large-scale molecular dynamics simulations of shock-induced lattice rotation in three model crystals whose behavior has previously been characterized in dynamic-compression experiments: tantalum shocked along its [101] direction, and copper shocked along either [001] or [111]. We find that, in all three cases, the texture changes predicted by the simulations are consistent with those measured experimentally using in situ x-ray diffraction. We show that while tantalum loaded along [101] and copper loaded along [001] both show pronounced rotation due to asymmetric multiple slip, the orientation of copper shocked along [111] is predicted to be stabilized by opposing rotations arising from competing, symmetrically equivalent slip systems.

Abstract:

The interaction between a molecular cloud and an external agent (e.g., a supernova remnant, plasma jet, radiation, or another cloud) is a common phenomenon throughout the Universe and can significantly change the star formation rate within a galaxy. This process leads to fragmentation of the cloud and to its subsequent compression and can, eventually, initiate the gravitational collapse of a stable molecular cloud. It is, however, difficult to study such systems in detail using conventional techniques (numerical simulations and astronomical observations), since complex interactions of flows occur. In this paper, we experimentally investigate the compression of a foam ball by Taylor–Sedov blast waves, as an analog of supernova remnants interacting with a molecular cloud. The formation of a compression wave is observed in the foam ball, indicating the importance of such experiments for understanding how star formation is triggered by external agents.

Abstract:

We present first results from a novel experimental platform that is able to access physics relevant to topics including indirect-drive magnetized inertial confinement fusion, laser energy deposition, various topics in atomic physics, and laboratory astrophysics (for example, the penetration of B-fields into high energy density plasmas). This platform uses the x rays from a wire array Z-pinch to irradiate a silicon target, producing an outflow of ablated plasma. The ablated plasma expands into ambient, dynamically significant B-fields (∼5 T), which are supported by the current flowing through the Z-pinch. The outflows have a well-defined (quasi-1D) morphology, enabling the study of fundamental processes typically only available in more complex, integrated schemes. Experiments were fielded on the MAGPIE pulsed-power generator (1.4 MA, 240 ns rise time). On this machine, a wire array Z-pinch produces an x-ray pulse carrying a total energy of ∼15 kJ over ∼30 ns. This equates to an average brightness temperature of around 10 eV on-target.