Observation of MeV ions in long-pulse, large-scale laser-produced plasmas

A new approach for investigation of the generation of fast ions and hot electrons inside the same plasma volume in laser-produced plasmas is proposed. It is based on the spectroscopic observation of line radiation from singly and doubly excited levels with simultaneous high spectral and spatial resolution. The experimental results demonstrate the observation of fast ions from highly charged target material inside the plasma volume and suggest that the generally accepted scaling relations are seriously invalid under certain conditions. Even at rather modest intensities ions with energies of several MeV are observed.