Contemporary particle-in-cell approach to laser-plasma modelling

Arber, T. D.; Bennett, Keith; Brady, Christopher S.; Lawrence-Douglas, A.; Ramsay, Martin; Sircombe, N J; Gillies, P.; Evans, R. G.; Schmitz, Holger; Bell, A. R.; Ridgers, C. P.

doi:10.1088/0741-3335/57/11/113001

Cited by 1,346 publications

(969 citation statements)

References 129 publications

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“…We verify with PIC simulations using the EPOCH code  (Arber et al 2015) that the instability grows on the observed timescales. We let two initially separated plasma clouds collide.…”

Section: Simulationsmentioning

confidence: 82%

Experimental Observation of Thin-shell Instability in a Collisionless Plasma

Ahmed

Doria

Dieckmann

et al. 2017

ApJL

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We report on the experimental observation of the instability of a plasma shell, which formed during the expansion of a laser-ablated plasma into a rarefied ambient medium. By means of a proton radiography technique, the evolution of the instability is temporally and spatially resolved on a timescale much shorter than the hydrodynamic one. The density of the thin shell exceeds that of the surrounding plasma, which lets electrons diffuse outward. An ambipolar electric field grows on both sides of the thin shell that is antiparallel to the density gradient. Ripples in the thin shell result in a spatially varying balance between the thermal pressure force mediated by this field and the ram pressure force that is exerted on it by the inflowing plasma. This mismatch amplifies the ripples by the same mechanism that drives the hydrodynamic nonlinear thin-shell instability (NTSI). Our results thus constitute the first experimental verification that the NTSI can develop in colliding flows.

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“…We verify with PIC simulations using the EPOCH code  (Arber et al 2015) that the instability grows on the observed timescales. We let two initially separated plasma clouds collide.…”

Section: Simulationsmentioning

confidence: 82%

Experimental Observation of Thin-shell Instability in a Collisionless Plasma

Ahmed

Doria

Dieckmann

et al. 2017

ApJL

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“…1D simulations have been carried out using the PIC code, EPOCH [28]. We choose a simulation domain spanning [-600, 200] μm in x with 64000 cells.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Generation of Superponderomotive Electrons in Multipicosecond Interactions of Kilojoule Laser Beams with Solid-Density Plasmas

et al. 2016

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“…The PIC code EPOCH [15] was used to simulate a defocused laser onto a planar solid target. The spatial size of the simulation box is set to 200 × 120 µm, which is made up of 8000×4800 cells.…”

Section: D Epoch Simulationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Escaping Electrons from Intense Laser-Solid Interactions as a Function of Laser Spot Size

Rusby

Gray

Butler

et al. 2018

EPJ Web of Conferences

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Abstract. The interaction of a high-intensity laser with a solid target produces an energetic distribution of electrons that pass into the target. These electrons reach the rear surface of the target creating strong electric potentials that act to restrict the further escape of additional electrons. The measurement of the angle, flux and spectra of the electrons that do escape gives insights to the initial interaction. Here, the escaping electrons have been measured using a differentially filtered image plate stack, from interactions with intensities from mid 10 20 -10 17 W/cm 2 , where the intensity has been reduced by defocussing to increase the size of the focal spot. An increase in electron flux is initially observed as the intensity is reduced from 4x10 20 to 6x10 18 W/cm 2 . The temperature of the electron distribution is also measured and found to be relatively constant. 2D particle-in-cell modelling is used to demonstrate the importance of pre-plasma conditions in understanding these observations.

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Contemporary particle-in-cell approach to laser-plasma modelling

Cited by 1,346 publications

References 129 publications

Experimental Observation of Thin-shell Instability in a Collisionless Plasma

Experimental Observation of Thin-shell Instability in a Collisionless Plasma

Generation of Superponderomotive Electrons in Multipicosecond Interactions of Kilojoule Laser Beams with Solid-Density Plasmas

Escaping Electrons from Intense Laser-Solid Interactions as a Function of Laser Spot Size

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