[P-EM17] Space Plasma Science

[PEM17-04] Formation mechanism of seed-shock in a high-power laser experiment

*Shuichi Matsukiyo¹, Kotaro Oshida², Shogo Isayama¹, Taichi Morita¹, Taichi Takezaki³, Ryo Yamazaki⁴, Shuta J Tanaka⁴, Yasuhiro Kuramitsu⁵, Kentaro Tomita⁶, Takayoshi Sano⁷, Youichi Sakawa⁷ (1.Faculty of Engineering Sciences, Kyushu University, 2.Interdisciplenary Graduate School of Engineering Sciences, Kyushu University, 3.Faculty of Engineering, University of Toyama, 4.Department of Physical Sciences, Aoyama Gakuin University, 5.Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, 6.Division of Quantum Science and Engineering, Hokkaido University, 7.Institute of Laser Engineering, Osaka University)

Keywords:PIC simulation, high power laser experiment, shock formation

Recently, collisionless shock experiments using high-power lasers have been actively conducted. By filling a chamber with rarefied gas and irradiating a solid target with a laser, the plasma originating from the target acts as a piston, generating shock waves in the gas plasma. However, the detailed mechanism of shock formation remains unclear, preventing precise control over the generated shocks.

In this study, we aim to reproduce the interaction between the gas plasma and target plasma in experiments using Particle-in-Cell (PIC) simulations, with the goal of elucidating the mechanism behind shock formation. As initial conditions, we place a uniform background gas plasma and inject the target plasma from the position X=0 for a finite period. The injection time simulates the laser irradiation time in the experiment. By varying the injection time and other parameters, we discuss how the mechanism of shock formation changes.