Use of external magnetic fields in hohlraum plasmas to improve laser-coupling
- Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico 87545 (United States)
- Laboratory for Laser Energetics, University of Rochester, Rochester, New York 14623 (United States)
- Department of Atmospheric, Oceanic, and Space Science, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109 (United States)
- Sandia National Laboratory, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87185 (United States)
Efficient coupling of laser energy into hohlraum targets is important for indirect drive ignition. Laser-plasma instabilities can reduce coupling, reduce symmetry, and cause preheat. We consider the effects of an external magnetic field on laser-energy coupling in hohlraum targets. Experiments were performed at the Omega Laser Facility using low-Z gas-filled hohlraum targets which were placed in a magnetic coil with B{sub z} ≤ 7.5-T. We found that an external field B{sub z} = 7.5-T aligned along the hohlraum axis results in up to a 50% increase in plasma temperature as measured by Thomson scattering. The experiments were modeled using the 2-D magnetohydrodynamics package in HYDRA and were found to be in good agreement.
- OSTI ID:
- 22407977
- Journal Information:
- Physics of Plasmas, Vol. 22, Issue 1; Other Information: (c) 2015 AIP Publishing LLC; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 1070-664X
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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