The Rayleigh-Taylor and Kelvin-Helmholtz Instabilites in Targets Accelerated by Laser Ablation.

Abstract

Using the FAST2D laser-shell simulation model we have accelerated a 20 micrometer thick plastic foil up to 160 km/s. The foil maintained its integrity up to 10 ns giving an aspect ratio of 40. We are able to follow the Rayleigh-Taylor bubble-and-spike development far into the nonlinear regime and beyond the point of foil fragmentation. Strong shear flow develops at the interface between the bubble-and-spike which leads to the development of the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability. The K-H instability causes the tips of the spikes to widen and as a result reduce their rate of 'fall.' (Author)

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Sep 25, 1981
Accession Number
ADA104804

Entities

People

  • Jay Paul Boris
  • John H. Gardner
  • M. H. Emery

Organizations

  • United States Naval Research Laboratory

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Energy and Power Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Ablation
  • Amplitude
  • Aspect Ratio
  • Computational Fluid Dynamics
  • Conduction (Heat Transfer)
  • Flow
  • Fluid Dynamics
  • Fluid Flow
  • Instability
  • Intensity
  • Layers
  • Low Density
  • Shear Flow
  • Stratified Fluids
  • Temperature Gradients
  • Turbulent Mixing
  • Two Dimensional

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Atmospheric Science / Meteorology, specifically Wind Wave Turbulence.
  • Pulsed Power and Plasma Physics.

Technology Areas

  • Directed Energy