title: ORION laser target diagnostics.
abstract: The ORION laser facility is one of the UK's premier laser facilities which became operational at AWE in 2010. Its primary mission is one of stockpile stewardship, ORION will extend the UK's experimental plasma physics capability to the high temperature, high density regime relevant to Atomic Weapons Establishment's (AWE) program. The ORION laser combines ten laser beams operating in the ns regime with two sub ps short pulse chirped pulse amplification beams. This gives the UK a unique combined long pulse/short pulse laser capability which is not only available to AWE personnel but also gives access to our international partners and visiting UK academia. The ORION laser facility is equipped with a comprehensive suite of some 45 diagnostics covering optical, particle, and x-ray diagnostics all able to image the laser target interaction point. This paper focuses on a small selection of these diagnostics.
authors.affiliation: Plasma Physics Department, Atomic Weapons Establishment, Aldermaston, Reading, Berkshire, England, UK. chris.bentley@awe.co.uk
authors.forename: C D
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Bentley
authors.forename: R D
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Edwards
authors.forename: J E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Andrew
authors.forename: S F
authors.initials: SF
authors.lastname: James
authors.forename: M D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Gardner
authors.forename: A J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Comley
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Vaughan
authors.forename: C J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Horsfield
authors.forename: M S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Rubery
authors.forename: S D
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Rothman
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Daykin
authors.forename: S J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Masoero
authors.forename: J B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Palmer
authors.forename: A L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Meadowcroft
authors.forename: B M
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.forename: E T
authors.initials: ET
authors.lastname: Gumbrell
authors.forename: J D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Fyrth
authors.forename: C R D
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Brown
authors.forename: M P
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Hill
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Oades
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Wright
authors.forename: B A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Hood
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Kemshall