Shock waves and acceleration of thin foils by laser pulses in confined plasma interaction

The process of shock wave generation and shock evolution in a solid target by confined laser plasma, in the range 108–1010 W/cm2 incident intensity, is analyzed with the use of computer simulations. Predicted variations of plasma pressure are consistent with theoretical results from simple analytical models and with experimental data. The simulations also provide a complete description of various effects such as target or confinement thickness and acceleration of thin foils.