Ultrafast laser-matter interaction with nanostructured targets

Conference item

Conventional solid-density laser-plasma targets quickly ionize to make a plasma mirror, which largely reflects ultra-intense laser pulses. This Fresnel reflection at the plane boundary largely wastes our e orts at ultra-intense laser/solid interaction, and limits target heating to nonlinear generation of high-energy electrons which penetrate inward. One way around this dual problem is to create a material with an anisotropic dielectric function, for instance by nanostructuring a material in such a way that it cannot support the material responses which generate a specularly reflected beam. We present linear theory for metallic and plasma nanowires, particle-incell simulations of the interaction of ultra-intense femtosecond pulses with nickel nanowires, showing penetration of laser light far deeper than a nickel skin-depth, helping to uniformly heat near-solid material to conditions of high energy-densities, and XFEL experiments giving insight into their ionization and excitation.

Authors: Marjoribanks, RS; Lecherbourg, L; Sipe, JE; Kulcsar, G; Heron, A

• Publication status: Published
• Publisher: Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE)
• Host title: X-Ray Lasers and Coherent X-Ray Sources: Development and Applications XIII; 111110L (2019)
• Volume: 11111
• Article number: UNSP 111110L
• Publication date: 2019-10-21
• Event title: SPIE Optics + Photonics 2019
• Event location: San Diego, California
• Event website: https://spie.org/conferences-and-exhibitions/past-conferences-and-exhibitions/optics-and-photonics-2019
• Event start date: 2019-08-11
• Event end date: 2019-08-15
• DOI: 10.1117/12.2533528
• EISSN: 1996-756X
• ISSN: 0277-786X
• ISBN: 978-1-5106-2915-8
• Language: English