Determination of laser intensity and hot-electron temperature from fastest ion velocity measurement on laser-produced plasma

Measurements of the velocity of the fastest ion emitted by a CO2-laser-produced plasma were made, and it was found that the relationship between velocity and laser flux was given by Vi =5.7×106 φ1/6l for single-beam illumination. Comparison with computer simulation, ion velocity spectrum, and x-ray data indicate that the hot-electron temperature is given by Th =7.5×10−18 V2i. Measurements of emission from multiple-beam experiments and from experiments at 1.06 μm wavelength are also described. Some simple models are used for discussion and correlation of the data.