Measurements of laser-plasma instabilities in double-cone ignition experiments relevant to the direct-drive conditions at Shenguang-II Upgrade laser facility

Abstract

Experiments have been performed to investigate laser-plasma instabilities (LPIs) relevant to the direct-drive inertial confinement fusion (ICF) conditions at the Shenguang-II Upgrade (SG-II UP) laser facility during the double-cone ignition (DCI) experimental campaigns, with the overlapped laser intensity ranging from 6×1014 W/cm2 to 1.8×1015 W/cm2. An overall LPI scenario has been built from the collection and investigation of angularly distributed scattered light. Across broad ranges of laser and plasma parameters, relevant to the direct-drive ICF conditions, the dominance of the stimulated Raman side scattering (SRSS) was confirmed, and its coexistence with the two-plasmon decay (TPD) was also observed. Significant SRSS scattered light was observed across an extremely wide range of emission angles, concentrated at large angles, and demonstrated to be robust throughout the parameter space. Time-resolved spectral measurements show distinctly different SRSS behaviors along different angles and a slightly higher threshold compared to the TPD. The overall SRSS energy loss was measured, indicating a scattered light energy fraction of up to 6%. These results are of crucial importance for the precise assessment of the LPIs in the DCI as well as other laser directly driven ICF schemes.