Observation of Magnetized Soliton Remnants in the Wake of Intense Laser Pulse Propagation through Plasmas

Slowly evolving, regularly spaced patterns have been observed in proton projection images of plasma channels drilled by intense (greater than or similar to 10(19) W cm(-2)) short (similar to 1 ps) laser pulses propagating in an ionized gas jet. The nature and geometry of the electromagnetic fields generating such patterns have been inferred by simulating the laser-plasma interaction and the following plasma evolution with a two-dimensional particle-in-cell code and the probe proton deflections by particle tracing. The analysis suggests the formation of rows of magnetized soliton remnants, with a quasistatic magnetic field associated with vortexlike electron currents resembling those of magnetic vortices.

Progress in proton radiography for diagnosis of ICF-relevant plasmas

Proton radiography using laser-driven sources has been developed as a diagnostic since the beginning of the decade, and applied successfully to a range of experimental situations. Multi-MeV protons driven from thin foils via the Target Normal Sheath Acceleration mechanism, offer, under optimal conditions, the possibility of probing laser-plasma interactions, and detecting electric and magnetic fields as well as plasma density gradients with similar to ps temporal resolution and similar to 5-10 mu m spatial resolution. In view of these advantages, the use of proton radiography as a diagnostic in experiments of relevance to Inertial Confinement Fusion is currently considered in the main fusion laboratories. This paper will discuss recent advances in the application of laser-driven radiography to experiments of relevance to Inertial Confinement Fusion. In particular we will discuss radiography of hohlraum and gasbag targets following the interaction of intense ns pulses. These experiments were carried out at the HELEN laser facility at AWE (UK), and proved the suitability of this diagnostic for studying, with unprecedented detail, laser-plasma interaction mechanisms of high relevance to Inertial Confinement Fusion. Non-linear solitary structures of relevance to space physics, namely phase space electron holes, have also been highlighted by the measurements. These measurements are discussed and compared to existing models.

Quantitative analysis of proton imaging measurements of laser-induced plasmas

A method for obtaining quantitative information about electric field and charge distributions from proton imaging measurements of laser-induced plasmas is presented. A parameterised charge distribution is used as target plasma. The deflection of a proton beam by the electric field of such a plasma is simulated numerically as well as the resulting proton density, which will be obtained on a screen behind the plasma according to the proton imaging technique. The parameters of the specific charge distributions are delivered by a combination of linear regression and nonlinear fitting of the calculated proton density distribution to the measured optical density of a radiochromic film screen changed by proton exposure. It is shown that superpositions of spherical Gaussian charge distributions as target plasma are sufficient to simulate various structures in proton imaging measurements, which makes this method very flexible.

Proton moire fringes for diagnosing electromagnetic fields in opaque materials and plasmas

High contrast proton moire fringes have been obtained in a laser-produced proton beam. Moire u fringes with modulation of 20%-30% were observed in protons with energies in the range of 4 - 7 MeV. Monte Carlo simulations with simple test fields showed that shifts in the moire u fringes can be used to give quantitative information on the strength of transient electromagnetic fields inside plasmas and materials that are opaque to conventional probing methods. (C) 2003 American Institute of Physics.

Linear and nonlinear properties of Rao-dust-Alfven waves in magnetized plasmas

The linear and nonlinear properties of the Rao-dust-magnetohydrodynamic (R-D-MHD) waves in a dusty magnetoplasma are studied. By employing the inertialess electron equation of motion, inertial ion equation of motion, Ampere's law, Faraday's law, and the continuity equation in a plasma with immobile charged dust grains, the linear and nonlinear propagation of two-dimensional R-D-MHD waves are investigated. In the linear regime, the existence of immobile dust grains produces the Rao cutoff frequency, which is proportional to the dust charge density and the ion gyrofrequency. On the other hand, the dynamics of amplitude modulated R-D-MHD waves is governed by the cubic nonlinear Schrodinger equation. The latter has been derived by using the reductive perturbation technique and the two-timescale analysis which accounts for the harmonic generation nonlinearity in plasmas. The stability of the modulated wave envelope against non-resonant perturbations is studied. Finally, the possibility of localized envelope excitations is discussed. (C) 2004 American Institute of Physics.

Lagrangian description of nonlinear dust-ion acoustic waves in dusty plasmas

An analytical model is presented for the description of nonlinear dust-ion-acoustic waves propagating in an unmagnetized, collisionless, three component plasma composed of electrons, ions and inertial dust grains. The formulation relies on a Lagrangian approach of the plasma fluid model. The modulational stability of the wave amplitude is investigated. Different types of localized envelope electrostatic excitations are shown to exist.

Modulated wave packets and envelope solitary structures in complex plasmas

A theoretical study is presented of the nonlinear amplitude modulation of waves propagating in unmagnetized plasmas contaminated by charged dust particles. Distinct well-known dusty plasma modes are explicitly considered, namely, the dust-acoustic wave, the dust-ion acoustic wave, and transverse dust-lattice waves. Using a multiple-scale technique, a nonlinear Schrodinger-type equation is derived, describing the evolution of the wave amplitude. A stability analysis reveals the possibility for modulational instability to occur, possibly leading to the formation of different types of envelope-localized excitations (solitary waves), under conditions which depend on the wave dispersion laws and intrinsic dusty plasma parameters.