title: Study of the ion-distribution dynamics of an aluminum laser-produced plasma with picosecond resolution.
abstract: The ion-distribution dynamics of an expanding aluminum plasma produced by a nanosecond laser pulse at moderate intensity (10(13) W cm(-2)) is studied by point-projection x-ray absorption spectroscopy with unprecedented, picosecond, time resolution. We show that the ionic populations measured as a function of distance to the target and at different probing times differ markedly from those predicted by widely accepted collisional radiative models coupled to hydrodynamic simulations. We discuss the effects of radiation, conduction, and expansion cooling on the spatiotemporal ionic distribution evolution.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire pour l'Utilisation des Lasers Intenses, UMR7605, CNRS-CEA-Universite Paris VI-Ecole Polytechnique, 91128 Palaiseau, France.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fajardo
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Audebert
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Renaudin
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yashiro
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Shepherd
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Gauthier
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Chenais-Popovics