title: Direct observation of strong ion coupling in laser-driven shock-compressed targets.
abstract: In this Letter we report on a near collective x-ray scattering experiment on shock-compressed targets. A highly coupled Al plasma was generated and probed by spectrally resolving an x-ray source forward scattered by the sample. A significant reduction in the intensity of the elastic scatter was observed, which we attribute to the formation of an incipient long-range order. This speculation is confirmed by x-ray scattering calculations accounting for both electron degeneracy and strong coupling effects. Measurements from rear side visible diagnostics are consistent with the plasma parameters inferred from x-ray scattering data. These results give the experimental evidence of the strongly coupled ionic dynamics in dense plasmas.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire pour l'Utilisation de Lasers Intenses, UMR7605, CNRS-CEA, Université Paris VI-Ecole Polytechnique, 91128 Palaiseau Cedex, France.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ravasio
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Gregori
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Benuzzi-Mounaix
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Daligault
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Delserieys
authors.forename: A Ya
authors.initials: AY
authors.lastname: Faenov
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Loupias
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ozaki
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rabec le Gloahec
authors.forename: T A
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Pikuz
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Riley
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Koenig