Experimental Studies of Electromagnetic Propagation at Ultrahigh Intensities.
Abstract
The development of a unified picture of short-pulse high-intensity multiphoton processes, embracing atoms, molecules, and solids, appears possible through the study of clusters. Of particular significance are possible intercluster processes that can influence the mechanism of ionization and lead to the production of inner-shell vacancies. Inner-shell excitation leading to prompt X-ray emission is specifically considered and the treatment leads to the definition of a critical cluster size representing the achievement of maximal X-ray emission from the ensemble. These results suggest the possibility of designing a new class of molecular materials optimized for the efficient production and amplification of x-rays. Recent experiments, specifically designed to evaluate certain essential predictions of the cluster picture, have furnished considerable supporting evidence for the main features of the proposed model. These studies, which involved Kr and Xe, (1) established the crucial role of cluster formation in the generation of soft x-ray emission, (2) verified the scaling of this new phenomenon in to the kilovolt region, (3) provided important insights concerning the dynamical character of the strong-field coupling to the clusters and (4) combined the cluster excitation with a recently discovered mode of channeled propagation. These results strongly indicate that the predicted amplification can be achieved.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Oct 01, 1994
- Accession Number
- ADA290284
Entities
People
- Armon Mcpherson
- Charles K. Rhodes
- Keith Boyer
- Ting Shan Luk
Organizations
- University of Illinois at Chicago