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Updated: Apr 25, 2026

A Method for Studying the Temperature Dependence of Dynamic Fracture and Fragmentation
Published on: June 28, 2015
Time-resolved characterization of the formation of a collisionless shock
H Ahmed1, M E Dieckmann1, L Romagnani2
1Centre for Plasma Physics, School of Mathematics and Physics, Queen's University of Belfast, Belfast BT7 1NN, United Kingdom.
Abstract:
We report on the temporally and spatially resolved detection of the precursory stages that lead to the formation of an unmagnetized, supercritical collisionless shock in a laser-driven laboratory experiment. The measured evolution of the electrostatic potential associated with the shock unveils the transition from a current free double layer into a symmetric shock structure, stabilized by ion reflection at the shock front. Supported by a matching particle-in-cell simulation and theoretical considerations, we suggest that this process is analogous to ion reflection at supercritical collisionless shocks in supernova remnants.
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