Instability of a thin conducting foil accelerated by a finite wavelength intense laser

Eliasson, B (2015) Instability of a thin conducting foil accelerated by a finite wavelength intense laser. New Journal of Physics, 17 (3). 033026. ISSN 1367-2630 (https://doi.org/10.1088/1367-2630/17/3/033026)

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Abstract

We derive a theoretical model for the Rayleigh-Taylor (RT)-like instability for a thin foil accelerated by an intense laser, taking into account finite wavelength effects in the laser wave field. The latter leads to the diffraction of the electromagnetic wave off the periodic structures arising from the instability of the foil, which significantly modifies the growth rate of the RT-like instability when the perturbations on the foil have wavenumbers comparable to or larger than the laser wavenumber. In particular, the growth rate has a local maximum at a perturbation wavenumber approximately equal to the laser wavenumber. The standard RT instability, arising from a pressure difference between the two sides of a foil, is approximately recovered for perturbation wavenumbers smaller than the laser wavenumber. Differences in the results for circular and linear polarization of the laser light are pointed out. The model has significance to radiation pressure acceleration of thin foils, where RT-like instabilities are significant obstacles.

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Item metadata

Item type:	Article
ID code:	51899
Dates:	Date Event 31 March 2015 Published 12 March 2015 Published Online 10 February 2015 Accepted
Subjects:	Science > Physics
Department:	Faculty of Science > Physics
Depositing user:	Pure Administrator
Date deposited:	24 Feb 2015 12:05
Last modified:	08 Apr 2024 22:07
URI:	https://strathprints.strath.ac.uk/id/eprint/51899

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