Laser Shock Laboratory

The Laser Shock Laboratory is an excellent complement to the gas guns used in the Impact Laboratory because pulse durations are considerably shorter than those typically attainable with gas guns. In addition, the experimental capabilities permit a high experimental repetition rate for smaller samples.

Laser driven impacts occur when high pressure plasma, generated by an incident laser pulse, launches a thin metal foil (flyer) to speeds up to 2 km/s.

Sample pressures exceeding 20 GPa or 200 Kbar can be generated with pressure pulse durations ranging from a few nanoseconds up to 20 nanoseconds.

Experimental capabilities include time-resolved continuum measurements using laser interferometry (VISAR), single shot time resolved optical spectroscopy, and recovery measurements.

			Laser Shock Facility