Improved gas-jet based extreme ultraviolet, soft X-ray laser plasma source

Area of Science:

• Plasma Physics
• Optics and Photonics
• X-ray Science

Background:

• Laser-produced plasmas are crucial sources for soft X-ray and extreme ultraviolet (XUV) radiation.
• Optimizing gas targets is key to increasing plasma brilliance and efficiency.
• Existing nozzle designs may limit achievable gas densities and plasma performance.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce and validate a new nozzle design for enhanced brilliance in laser-produced plasmas.
• To investigate the gas density distribution generated by the novel nozzle configuration.
• To optimize the nozzle arrangement for maximum plasma emission in the XUV and soft X-ray spectral regions.

Main Methods:

• Development of a rotationally asymmetric gas jet using two adjacent, angled nozzles.
• Tomographic analysis of the 3D gas density distribution with a Hartmann-Shack wavefront sensor.
• Comparison of experimental data with numerical simulations for nozzle optimization.

Main Results:

• The colliding gas jets create a highly dense, optimized gas distribution.
• A significant enhancement in the brilliance of the extreme ultraviolet and soft X-ray plasma was achieved.
• The nozzle arrangement was successfully optimized through experimental and simulation-based analysis.

Conclusions:

• The new nozzle design effectively increases gas density, leading to superior plasma brilliance.
• This advancement offers improved sources for applications requiring high-intensity XUV and soft X-ray radiation.
• The study demonstrates a viable method for optimizing gas jet configurations for laser-plasma interactions.