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Title: On- and off-axis spectral emission features from laser-produced gas breakdown plasmas

Journal Article · · Physics of Plasmas
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4985678· OSTI ID:1367381
 [1];  [2];  [1];  [1];  [1];  [3]
  1. Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
  2. Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (United States)
  3. Purdue Univ., West Lafayette, IN (United States)

Laser-heated gas breakdown plasmas or sparks emit profoundly in the ultraviolet and visible region of the electromagnetic spectrum with contributions from ionic, atomic, and molecular species. Laser created kernels expand into a cold ambient with high velocities during its early lifetime followed by confinement of the plasma kernel and eventually collapse. However, the plasma kernels produced during laser breakdown of gases are also capable of exciting and ionizing the surrounding ambient medium. Two mechanisms can be responsible for excitation and ionization of surrounding ambient: viz. photoexcitation and ionization by intense ultraviolet emission from the sparks produced during the early times of its creation and/or heating by strong shocks generated by the kernel during its expansion into the ambient. In this study, an investigation is made on the spectral features of on- and off-axis emission features of laser-induced plasma breakdown kernels generated in atmospheric pressure conditions with an aim to elucidate the mechanisms leading to ambient excitation and emission. Pulses from an Nd:YAG laser emitting at 1064 nm with 6 ns pulse duration are used to generate plasma kernels. Laser sparks were generated in air, argon, and helium gases to provide different physical properties of expansion dynamics and plasma chemistry considering the differences in laser absorption properties, mass density and speciation. Point shadowgraphy and time-resolved imaging were used to evaluate the shock wave and spark self-emission morphology at early and late times while space and time resolved spectroscopy is used for evaluating the emission features as well as for inferring plasma fundaments at on- and off-axis. Structure and dynamics of the plasma kernel obtained using imaging techniques are also compared to numerical simulations using computational fluid dynamics code. The emission from the kernel showed that spectral features from ions, atoms and molecules are separated in time with an early time temperatures and densities in excess of 35000 K and 4×1018 /cm3 with an existence of thermal equilibrium. However, the emission from the off-kernel positions from the breakdown plasmas showed enhanced ultraviolet radiation with the presence of N2 bands and represented by non-LTE conditions. Finally, our results also highlight that the ultraviolet radiation emitted during early time of spark evolution is the predominant source of the photo-excitation of the surrounding medium.

Research Organization:
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE
Grant/Contract Number:
AC05-76RL01830
OSTI ID:
1367381
Alternate ID(s):
OSTI ID: 1364183
Report Number(s):
PNNL-SA-125704; DN2001000
Journal Information:
Physics of Plasmas, Vol. 24, Issue 6; ISSN 1070-664X
Publisher:
American Institute of Physics (AIP)Copyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 22 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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Cited By (7)

Spatial, temporal, and spectral characterization and kinetic investigations of a high repetition-rate laser-induced micro-plasma in air journal January 2019
Numerical investigation of nanosecond laser induced plasma and shock wave dynamics from air using 2D hydrodynamic code journal August 2017
Optical spectroscopy of laser-produced plasmas for standoff isotopic analysis journal June 2018
An evaluation of equilibrium conditions and temperature-dependent speciation in a laser-produced air plasma journal August 2018
Dynamics of prompt electrons, ions, and neutrals of nanosecond laser ablation of tungsten investigated using optical emission journal January 2019
Role of laser absorption and equation-of-state models on ns laser induced ablative plasma and shockwave dynamics in ambient air: Numerical and experimental investigations journal July 2019
Laser induced breakdown in pulsed helium atmospheric pressure plasma jet journal May 2019

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