Generation of high pressures by short-pulse low-energy laser irradiation

The goal of this paper is twofold: first, we demonstrate shock generation with ultrashort (24 fs) and low-energy (J) laser pulse, following the energy deposition in the target by fast electrons; second, we show that such shocks can be used to provide information on compressed matter. For a target with 50 μm thickness we have clearly inferred the formation of a shock wave with pressure ≥100 Mbar. We have also measured the color temperature of the emitting target rear side at breakout time (T ≈ 0.6 eV), which is in good agreement with predictions from equation-of-state models (SESAME tables) and hydrodynamic simulations.