2004/11/01 by P. M. Celliers, D. K. Bradley, G. W. Collins +4 · 3 citations
Earth and Planetary Sciences · Physics and Astronomy · #High-pressure geophysics and materials #Laser-Matter Interactions and Applications #Laser-Plasma Interactions and Diagnostics
paper · doi:10.1063/1.1807008
openalex publication_date 2004/11/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/29
A line-imaging velocity interferometer has been implemented at the OMEGA laser facility of the Laboratory for Laser Energetics, University of Rochester. This instrument is the primary diagnostic for a variety of experiments involving laser-driven shock-wave propagation, including high-pressure equation of state experiments, materials characterization experiments, shock characterization for Rayleigh–Taylor experiments, and shock timing experiments for inertial confinement fusion research. Using a laser probe beam to illuminate a target, the instrument measures shock breakout times at temporal resolutions as low as 20 ps, and spatial resolution ∼4 μm. For velocity measurements the detection limit is <0.1 km/s, and velocities of interfaces, free surfaces, and shock fronts traveling through transparent media can be measured with accuracies ∼1% over the range from 4 km/s to greater than 50 km/s. Quantitative measurements of the optical reflectance of ionizing shock fronts can also be obtained simultaneously with the velocity measurements.