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U.S. Department of Energy
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XUV probing of laser imprint in a thin foil using an x-ray laser backlighter

Conference ·
DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/464293· OSTI ID:243474

For direct drive ICF, a capsule is imploded by directly illuminating the surface with laser light. Beam smoothing and uniformity of illumination affect the seeding of instabilities at the ablation front. We have developed a technique for studying the imprint of a laser beam on a thin foil using an x-ray laser as an XUV backlighter. We use multilayer XUV optics to relay the x-ray laser onto the directly driven foil, and then to image the foil modulation onto a CCD camera. This technique allows us to measure small fractional variations in the foil thickness. We have measured the modulation due to imprint from a low intensity 0.35 pm drive beam incident on a 3 {mu}m Si foil using an yttrium x-ray laser on Nova. We present results from a similar technique to measure the imprinted modulation due to a low intensity 0.53 {mu}m drive beam incident on a 2 {mu}m Al foil using a germanium x-ray laser at the Vulcan facility.

Research Organization:
Lawrence Livermore National Lab., CA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
DOE Contract Number:
W-7405-ENG-48
OSTI ID:
243474
Report Number(s):
UCRL-JC--123284; CONF-960543--8; ON: DE96010409
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English