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Effects of laser profiles on fast electron generation under the same laser energy

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 May 2013

M. Hata*
Affiliation:
Department of Physics, Nagoya University, Nagoya, Japan
H. Sakagami
Affiliation:
Fundamental Physics Simulation Research Division, National Institute for Fusion Science, Toki, Japan
T. Johzaki
Affiliation:
Mechanical Systems Engineering, Hiroshima University, Higashihiroshima, Japan
H. Nagatomo
Affiliation:
Institute of Laser Engineering, Osaka University, Suita, Japan
*
Address correspondence and reprint requests to: M. Hata, Department of Physics, Nagoya University, Nagoya 464-8602, Japan. E-mail: hata.masayasu@nifs.ac.jp

Abstract

In fast ignition, optimization of laser profile for core heating is one approach to ignite the core. However, the profile is not so optimized and its effects on fast electron characteristics are not fully clarified yet. The laser profile is optimized under the condition of same laser energy because laser energy is restricted in experiments. Therefore, we investigate effects of laser profile on fast electron generation under the condition of same laser energy. In this paper, each effect of laser temporal and spatial profile is estimated independently using two-dimensional Particle-In-Cell simulations. We conclude that lower intensity laser suitable for fast ignition under the limit of simulated parameters when energy of laser is same because efficient core-heating electrons are much generated and divergence angle is smaller in low-intensity case compared to high-intensity case.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2013 

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References

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