A platform for studying the Rayleigh–Taylor and Richtmyer–Meshkov instabilities in a planar geometry at high energy density at the National Ignition Facility

Abstract

A new experimental platform has been developed at the National Ignition Facility (NIF) for studying the Rayleigh–Taylor (RT) and Richtmyer–Meshkov (RM) instabilities in a planar geometry at high-energy-densities. The platform uses 60 beams of the NIF laser to drive an initially solid shock tube containing a pre-machined interface between dense and light materials. The strong shock turns the initially solid target into a plasma and the material boundary into a fluid interface with the imprinted initial condition. The interface evolves by action of the RT and RM instabilities, and the growth is imaged with backlit x-ray radiography. We present our first data involving sinusoidal interface perturbations driven from the heavy side to the light side. Late-time radiographic images show the initial conditions reaching the deeply nonlinear regime, and an evolution of fine structure consistent with a transition to turbulence. We show preliminary comparisons with post-shot numerical simulations and discuss the implications for future campaigns.