Strong X-Ray Emission from High-Temperature Plasmas Produced by Intense Irradiation of Clusters

Abstract

The interaction of an intense laser pulse with large $(\ensuremath{\sim}100\AA{})$ clusters present in pulsed gas jets is shown to produce novel plasmas with electron temperatures far in excess of that predicted by above-threshold ionization theory. The enhanced absorption of the laser light by the dense clusters results in the production of high ion charge states via collisional ionization resulting in strong x-ray emission from the hot plasma.