arXiv subjects

C. Orban

Publications and source records attributed to C. Orban.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2019

High repetition rate (>= kHz) targets and optics from liquid microjets for the study and application of high intensity laser-plasma interactions

High intensity laser-plasma interactions produce a wide array of energetic particles and beams with promising applications. Unfortunately, high repetition rate and high average power requirements for many applications are not satisfied by the lasers, optics, targets, and diagnostics currently employed. Here, we address the need for high repetition rate targets and optics through the use of liquids. A novel nozzle assembly is used to generate high-velocity, laminar-flowing liquid microjets which are compatible with a low-vacuum environment, generate little to no debris, and exhibit precise positional and dimensional tolerances. Jets, droplets, submicron thick sheets, and other configurations are characterized with pump-probe shadowgraphy to evaluate their use as targets. To demonstrate a high repetition rate, consumable liquid optical element, we present a plasma mirror created by a submicron thick liquid sheet. This plasma mirror provides etalon-like anti-reflection properties in the low-field of 0.1% and high reflectivity as a plasma, 69%, at a repetition rate of 1 kHz. Practical considerations of fluid compatibility, in-vacuum operation, and estimates of maximum repetition rate, in excess of 10 kHz, are addressed. The targets and optics presented here enable the use of relativistically intense lasers at high average power and make possible many long proposed applications.

physics.plasm-ph↗

arXiv2014

A Novel Femtosecond-Gated, High-Resolution, Frequency-Shifted Shearing Interferometry Technique for Probing Pre-Plasma Expansion in Ultra-Intense Laser Experiments

Ultra-intense laser-matter interaction experiments (>10$^{18}$ W/cm$^{2}$) with dense targets are highly sensitive to the effect of laser "noise" (in the form of pre-pulses) preceding the main ultra-intense pulse. These system-dependent pre-pulses in the nanosecond and/or picosecond regimes are often intense enough to modify the target significantly by ionizing and forming a plasma layer in front of the target. Time resolved interferometry offers a robust way to characterize the expanding plasma during this period. We have developed a novel pump-probe interferometry system for an ultra-intense laser experiment that uses two short-pulse amplifiers synchronized by one ultra-fast seed oscillator to achieve 40-femtosecond time resolution over hundreds of nanoseconds, using a variable delay line and other techniques. The first of these amplifiers acts as the pump and delivers maximal energy to the interaction region. The second amplifier is frequency shifted and then frequency doubled to generate the femtosecond probe pulse. After passing through the laser-target interaction region, the probe pulse is split and recombined in a laterally sheared Michelson interferometer. Importantly, the frequency shift in the probe allows strong plasma self-emission at the second harmonic of the pump to be filtered out, allowing plasma expansion near the critical surface and elsewhere to be clearly visible in the interferograms. Three-phase reconstructions of the electron densities are then inferred by Abel inversion. This interferometric system delivers precise measurements of pre-plasma expansion that can identify the condition of the target at the moment that the ultra-intense pulse arrives. Such measurements are indispensable for correlating laser pre-pulse measurements with instantaneous plasma profiles and for enabling realistic Particle-in-Cell simulations of the ultra-intense laser-matter interaction.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2005

Potential Vorticity Evolution of a Protoplanetary Disk with An Embedded Protoplanet

We present two-dimensional inviscid hydrodynamic simulations of a protoplanetary disk with an embedded planet, emphasizing the evolution of potential vorticity (the ratio of vorticity to density) and its dependence on numerical resolutions. By analyzing the structure of spiral shocks made by the planet, we show that progressive changes of the potential vorticity caused by spiral shocks ultimately lead to the excitation of a secondary instability. We also demonstrate that very high numerical resolution is required to both follow the potential vorticity changes and identify the location where the secondary instability is first excited. Low-resolution results are shown to give the wrong location. We establish the robustness of a secondary instability and its impact on the torque onto the planet. After the saturation of the instability, the disk shows large-scale non-axisymmetry, causing the torque on the planet to oscillate with large amplitude. The impact of the oscillating torque on the protoplanet's migration remains to be investigated.

astro-ph↗