Scaling laws for laser driven exploding pusher targets

Abstract

An analytic model based on shock waves is used to describe the maximum density rho F, maximum temperature TF and minimum radius RF obtained in the laser driven implosion of a gas filled spherical shell target of shell thickness Delta T, shell radius R and initial gas density rho 1. The scaling behaviour rho F approximately rho 125/, rho FRf approximately rho 135/R and TF approximately ( alpha E0/M) rho 1-25/, is obtained, where E0 is the laser energy, M is the shell mass, and alpha is the hydrodynamically useful fraction of the laser energy. Instantaneous uniform heating of the shell is assumed in order to describe implosions of the 'exploding pusher' type.