title: Magnetic field generation by the Rayleigh-Taylor instability in laser-driven planar plastic targets.
abstract: Magnetic fields generated by the Rayleigh-Taylor instability were measured in laser-accelerated planar foils using ultrafast proton radiography. Thin plastic foils were irradiated with ∼4-kJ, 2.5-ns laser pulses focused to an intensity of ∼10(14)  W/cm(2) on the OMEGA EP Laser System. Target modulations were seeded by laser nonuniformities and amplified during target acceleration by the Rayleigh-Taylor instability. The experimental data show the hydrodynamic evolution of the target and MG-level magnetic fields generated in the broken foil. The experimental data are in good agreement with predictions from 2-D magnetohydrodynamic simulations.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory for Laser Energetics, University of Rochester, Rochester, New York 14623, USA.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.forename: P M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Nilson
authors.forename: I V
authors.initials: IV
authors.lastname: Igumenschev
authors.forename: S X
authors.initials: SX
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.forename: J R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Davies
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Stoeckl
authors.forename: M G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Haines
authors.forename: D H
authors.initials: DH
authors.lastname: Froula
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Betti
authors.forename: D D
authors.initials: DD
authors.lastname: Meyerhofer