Plasma jets produced in a single laser beam interaction with a planar target

A laser experiment on a plasma jet formation and its multidimensional numerical analysis are presented. Under suitable conditions on the laser intensity, focal spot radius, and target atomic number a radiative jet could be launched from a simple planar target. The jet lasts more than 10ns and extends over several millimeters. It has a velocity of around 500km∕s, a Mach number greater than 10, and a density above 1018cm−3. It is concluded from the dimensional analysis of the experiment and from numerical simulations that the x-ray emission has a dominant effect on the jet formation and collimation. The similarity criteria for scaling of the laser experiment to larger systems are verified. Using a relatively low-energy laser pulse, below 500J, one can produce a laboratory jet that presents similarities with astrophysical objects such as protostellar jets.