e-PLAS Analysis of Short Pulse Laser-Matter Interaction Experiments
Abstract
The transport of relativistic electrons1 generated in wire and foil targets by short-pulse lasers is examined with the new e-PLAS simulation code based on implicit-moment/ hybrid2 techniques. In a 50 m diameter Cu wire (Zeff = 15) as recently illuminated on the TITAN LLNL laser, for example, a 1.7x1020 W/cm2 simulated laser beam delivering a flat 30 m spot from the left (with 40 % absorption) generates the hot electron density profile depicted below at 940 fs. The peak hot density in the laser spot is ~3x10(21) electrons/cm3. This density drops to 3x10(19) electrons/cm3 200 microns into the wire. A peak temperature of 2 keV is achieved through Joule heating of the background electrons in the wire head near the deposition surface; a significantly lower ~0.4 keV is achieved in the wire body. Here, 300 MG thermoelectric B-fields are also calculated. Parameter studies relate the hot electron stopping to the surface B-field, modest drag slowing, and the background cold electron resisitvity, which is bleached by background heating to low values at late times.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jun 01, 2007
- Accession Number
- ADA609667
Entities
People
- C. M. Snell
- F. Beg
- M. S. Wei
- R. B. Stephens
- R. J. Mason
Organizations
- University of San Diego