Abstract

A series of ultrashort pulse laser-solid interaction experiments have been performed using copper and aluminum which illustrate charge transport properties of these strongly heated materials at near-solid density. In aluminum, as a Drude metal at the laser wavelength, the transport is seen to be strongly dominated by collisions with the appearance of a minimum mean free path. In copper, band absorption of the laser light is seen to be a strong process even at ~ 50 eV temperatures.

In the context of using ultra-short pulse laser-produced plasmas as a source of ultrashort pulse soft X-rays, evidence is presented that heat loss mechanisms in these hot solids may not be sufficiently rapid to result in subpicosecond soft X-ray bursts.

© 1988 Optical Society of America