Development of a monochromatic crystal backlight imager for the recent double-cone ignition experiments

We developed a monochromatic crystal backlight imaging system for the double-cone ignition(DCI) scheme, employing a spherically bent quartz crystal. This system was used to measure the spatial distribution and temporal evolution of the head-on colliding plasma from the two compressing cones in the DCI experiments. The influence of laser parameters on the x-ray backlighter intensity and spatial resolution of the imaging system was investigated. The imaging system had a spatial resolution of 10 μm when employing a CCD detector. Experiments demonstrated that the system can obtain time-resolved radiographic images with high quality, enabling the precise measurement of the shape, size, and density distribution of the plasma.

Effect of methane co-feeding on the selectivity of ethylene produced from oxidative dehydrogenation of ethane with CO_2 over a Ni-La/SiO_2 catalyst

A Ni-La/SiO2 catalyst was prepared through the incipient wetness impregnation method and tested in the oxidative dehydrogenation of ethane （ODHE） with CO2. The fresh and used catalysts were characterized by XRD and SEM techniques. The Ni-La/SiO2 catalyst exhibited catalytic activity for the oxidative dehydrogenation of ethane, but with low ethylene selectivity in the absence of methane. The selectivity to ethylene increased with increasing molar ratio of methane in the feed. The carbon deposited on the catalyst surface in the sole ODHE with CO2 was mainly inert carbon, while much more filamentous carbon was formed in the presence of methane. The filamentous carbon was easy to be removed by CO2, which might play a role in improving the conversion of ethane to ethylene. The introduction of methane might affect the equilibrium of the CO2 reforming of ethane and the ODHE with CO2. As a consequence, the synthesis gas produced from CO2 reforming of methane partly inhibited the reaction of ethane and promoted the ODHE with CO2, thus increasing the selectivity of ethylene.

An investigation of the L-shell x-ray conversion efficiency for laser-irradiated tin foils

We have used the ShenguangⅡlaser in third harmonic(351 nm)to investigate the emission of L-shell radiation in the 3.3–4.4 ke V range generated using thin foils of Sn coated onto a parylene substrate with irradiation of order 1015 W cm-2 and nanosecond pulse duration.In our experiment,we have concentrated on assessing the emission on the non-laser irradiated side as this allows an experimental geometry relevant to experiments on photo-ionised plasmas where a secondary target must be placed close to the source,to achieve x-ray fluxes appropriate to astrophysical objects.Overall L-shell conversion efficiencies are estimated to be of order 1%,with little dependence on Sn thickness between 400 and 800 nm.

Effects of Exogenousα-Ketoglutaric Acid on 2-Acetyl-1-Pyrroline,Yield Formation and Grain Quality Characters of Aromatic Rice

The improvement of grain quality in aromatic rice is very important for farmer to increase their income.Present study was conducted with a two-year field experiment and three aromatic rice cultivars in order to study the effects of exogenousα-ketoglutaric acid on yield formation,grain quality characters and the biosynthesis of 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline(2-AP,key component of aromatic rice’s fragrance)in aromatic rice.At heading stage,0.50 mmol L^(-1)(T1)and 1.00 mmol L^(-1)(T2)α-ketoglutaric acid solutions were overhead sprinkle to aromatic rice plants,respectively while the treatment which was overhead sprinkled with distilled water was set as control(CK).The results showed that 17.34%-33.04%and 21.39%-34.74%higher grain 2-AP contents were recorded in T1 and T2 treatments,respectively.Compared with CK,T1 and T2 treatments significantly reduced the transcript level of gene BADH2 which is related to the 2-AP biosynthesis in aromatic rice.3.86%-7.51%higher grain protein contents and 1.15%-3.37%higher head rice rates were also recorded inα-ketoglutaric acid treatments than CK.Moreover,T1 and T2 treatments remarkably decreased the chalky rice rate,chalkiness and grain amylose content.However,there was no remarkable difference in grain yield and related trails(effective panicle number,grain number per panicle,seed-setting rate and 1000-grain weight)among CK,T1 and T2 treatments.In conclusion,application of exogenousα-ketoglutaric acid enhanced 2-AP biosynthesis and improved grain quality of aromatic rice.

Observation of Zeeman splitting effect in a laser-driven coil

The Zeeman splitting effect is observed in a strong magnetic field generated by a laser-driven coil.The expanding plasma from the coil wire surface is concentrated at the coil center and interacts with the simultaneously generated magnetic field.The Cu I spectral lines at wavelengths of 510.5541,515.3235,and 521.8202 nm are detected and analyzed.The splittings of spectral lines are used to estimate the magnetic field strength at the coil center as∼31.4±15.7 T at a laser intensity of∼5.6310^(15) W/cm^(2),which agrees well with measurements using a B-dot probe.Some other plasma parameters of the central plasma disk are also studied.The temperature is evaluated from the Cu I spectral line intensity ratio,while the electron density is estimated from the Stark broadening effect.

Development of a New Subermerged Entry Nozzle in Thin Slab Caster

The fluid flow in the mould of the thin slab continuous caster has a large intluence on the quality of slabs and its productivity.The fluid flow pattern can be controlled by the SEN (Submerged Entry Nozzle) structure. Traditional SEN can not decrease the surface turbulence and penetration depth at the same time, especially at high casting speed. In order to improve the fluid flow in the mould, a new structure SEN-Dissipation SEN have been invented. The water modeling experiments proved that the dissipation SEN could satisfy, the needs of fluid flow condition in the mould at high casting speed.

Experimental Study of Fluid Flow in Thin Slab Continuous Caster Mould with Water-Model

Model study is an efficient method for optimizing the siructure of the mould and the submerged entry nozzle (SEN). Based on the similarity criteria, a full-scale water model has been established in accordance with the mould of thin-slab caster of the CSP (Compact Strip Production) operation. The effects of SEN structure including outlet area, outflow angle, nozzle width, thick-ness and immersion depth have been studied under high speed casting by measuring the amplitude and the impetus of top waves. By the orthogonal experiment design, not only the influence of the faCtors was estimated, but also the optimum work condition was judged. The rules of the fluid flow phenomena were summarized. The principle for choosing a reasonable structure of SEN was discussed.

麋鹿食物组成及其分析方法研究进展

麋鹿(Elaphurusdavidianus)是国家一级重点保护野生动物。自1980年麋鹿重引入项目开展以来,麋鹿食物组成便一直是科研工作者研究的重点之一。本文总结了北京麋鹿生态实验中心、江苏大丰麋鹿国家级自然保护区和湖北石首麋鹿国家级自然保护区麋鹿采食的主要植物资源,综述了常用动物食物组成研究方法,包括直接观察法、利用法、胃含物分析法、粪便显微分析法、胃含物或粪便DNA分析法和稳定同位素技术,并分析了个体因素、植物营养成分、植物可获得性和人为因素等对麋鹿食物组成的影响。对常用食物组成研究方法的比较分析表明,不同方法在解析食物组成时反映的时间尺度和食物分辨率不同,在麋鹿等大型濒危有蹄类动物研究中有其优势和局限性。现有的麋鹿相关研究表明,个体因素所导致的生理差异和能量需求改变会影响麋鹿的食物组成;植物营养成分包括粗蛋白、可溶性糖、纤维素等是影响麋鹿食物组成的重要因子;植物可获得性和人为因素则通过改变食物多样性和丰富度进一步影响麋鹿的食物组成。今后,建议研究者在明确研究目的和研究对象的基础上,评估可用研究方法的优缺点,选择适宜的样品采集和数据分析方法,构建合理的食物组成研究方案。此外,在今后的研究中,应注重整合麋鹿相关研究结果,利用多种方法相结合分析麋鹿的食物组成,全面解析麋鹿的食物选择机制,为深入研究重引入过程中麋鹿对生境破碎化、湿地退化、人为活动干扰等的响应提供指导,进一步推进麋鹿种群发展和长效保护工作的开展。

Theory of small-scale self-focusing of spatially partially coherent beams and its implications for high-power laser systems

Based on the paraxial wave equation,this study extends the theory of small-scale self-focusing(SSSF)from coherent beams to spatially partially coherent beams(PCBs)and derives a general theoretical equation that reveals the underlying physics of the reduction in the B-integral of spatially PCBs.From the analysis of the simulations,the formula for the modulational instability(MI)gain coefficient of the SSSF of spatially PCBs is obtained by introducing a decrease factor into the formula of the MI gain coefficient of the SSSF of coherent beams.This decrease can be equated to a drop in the injected light intensity or an increase in the critical power.According to this formula,the reference value of the spatial coherence of spatially PCBs is given,offering guidance to overcome the output power limitation of the high-power laser driver due to SSSF.

Petawatt and exawatt class lasers worldwide

In the 2015 review paper‘Petawatt Class Lasers Worldwide’a comprehensive overview of the current status of highpower facilities of>200 TW was presented.This was largely based on facility specifications,with some description of their uses,for instance in fundamental ultra-high-intensity interactions,secondary source generation,and inertial confinement fusion(ICF).With the 2018 Nobel Prize in Physics being awarded to Professors Donna Strickland and Gerard Mourou for the development of the technique of chirped pulse amplification(CPA),which made these lasers possible,we celebrate by providing a comprehensive update of the current status of ultra-high-power lasers and demonstrate how the technology has developed.We are now in the era of multi-petawatt facilities coming online,with 100 PW lasers being proposed and even under construction.In addition to this there is a pull towards development of industrial and multi-disciplinary applications,which demands much higher repetition rates,delivering high-average powers with higher efficiencies and the use of alternative wavelengths:mid-IR facilities.So apart from a comprehensive update of the current global status,we want to look at what technologies are to be deployed to get to these new regimes,and some of the critical issues facing their development.

Status and development of high-power laser facilities at the NLHPLP

In this paper, we review the status of the multifunctional experimental platform at the National Laboratory of High Power Laser and Physics(NLHPLP). The platform, including the SG-II laser facility, SG-II 9th beam, SG-II upgrade(SG-II UP) facility, and SG-II 5 PW facility, is operational and available for interested scientists studying inertial confinement fusion(ICF) and a broad range of high-energy-density physics. These facilities can provide important experimental capabilities by combining different pulse widths of nanosecond, picosecond, and femtosecond scales. In addition, the SG-II UP facility, consisting of a single petawatt system and an eight-beam nanosecond system, is introduced including several laser technologies that have been developed to ensure the performance of the facility. Recent developments of the SG-II 5 PW facility are also presented.

Analysis and construction status of SG-Ⅱ 5PW laser facility

We present a recent progress of the SG-II 5 PW facility, which designed a multi-petawatt ultrashort pulse laser based on optical parametric chirped-pulse amplification(OPCPA). The prior two optical parametric amplifiers have been accomplished and chirped pulses with an energy of 49.7 J and a full-width-at-half-maximum(FWHM) spectrum bandwidth of 85 nm have been achieved. In the PW-scale optical parametric amplification(OPA), with the pump pulse that has an energy of 118 J from the second harmonic generation of the SG-II 7 th beam, the pump-to-signal conversion efficiency is up to 41.9%, which to the best of our knowledge is the highest among all of the reported values for OPCPA systems. The compressed pulse is higher than 37 J in 21 fs(1.76 PW), and the focal spot is ～10 μm after the closed-loop corrections by the adaptive optics. Limited by the repetition of the pump laser, the SG-II 5 PW facility operates one shot per hour. It has successfully been employed for high energy physics experiments.

Progress of the injection laser system of SG-Ⅱ

A high power laser system was used to drive the ignition of inertial confinement fusion(ICF), of which the high energy,the uniform focal spot, the accurate laser waveform, and the synchronization between the laser beams are key parameters.To accomplish this, global laser characteristics control should be assured, which was the main purpose of the injection laser system. In this paper, the key technological progress involved in the improvement of the performance of the injection laser of SG-II is reported, including frequency domain control, time domain control, near-field spatial shaping, preamplifier technology, and the optical parametric chirped pulse amplification pump source.

Design and experimental demonstration of a high conversion efficiency OPCPA pre-amplifier for petawatt laser facility

We present the design and experiment of a broadband optical parametric chirped-pulse amplifier(OPCPA) which provides high conversion efficiency and good beam quality at 808 nm wavelength. Using a three-dimensional spatial and temporal numerical model, several design considerations necessary to achieve high conversion efficiency, good beam quality and good output stability are discussed. To improve the conversion efficiency and broaden the amplified signal bandwidth simultaneously, the nonlinear crystal length and OPCPA parameters are analyzed and optimized with the concept of dissipating amplified idler between optical parametric amplification(OPA) of two crystals configuration.In the experiment, an amplifier consisting of two OPCPA stages of ‘L’ type configuration was demonstrated by using the optimized parameters. An amplified signal energy of 160 mJ was achieved with a total pump-to-signal efficiency of 35%(43% efficiency for the OPCPA stage 2). The output bandwidth of signal pulse reached 80 nm and the signal pulse was compressed to 24 fs. The energy stability reached 1.67% RMS at 3% pump energy variation. The optimized OPCPA amplifier operates at a repetition rate of 1 Hz and is used as a front-end injection for the main amplifier of SG-II 5PW laser facility.

Absolute instability modes due to rescattering of stimulated Raman scattering in a large nonuniform plasma

Absolute instability modes due to secondary scattering of stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) in a large nonuniform plasma are studied theoretically and numerically. The backscattered light of convective SRS can be considered as a pump light with a finite bandwidth. The different frequency components of the backscattered light can be coupled to develop absolute SRS instability near their quarter-critical densities via rescattering process. The absolute SRS mode develops a Langmuir wave with a high phase velocity of about c/■ with c the light speed in vacuum. Given that most electrons are at low velocities in the linear stage, the absolute SRS mode grows with very weak Landau damping. When the interaction evolves into the nonlinear regime, the Langmuir wave can heat abundant electrons up to a few hundred ke V via the SRS rescattering. Our theoretical model is validated by particle-in-cell simulations. The absolute instabilities may play a considerable role in the experiments of inertial confinement fusion.

Target alignment in the Shen-Guang Ⅱ Upgrade laser facility

The Shen-Guang II Upgrade(SG-Ⅱ-U) laser facility consists of eight high-power nanosecond laser beams and one shortpulse picosecond petawatt laser. It is designed for the study of inertial confinement fusion(ICF), especially for conducting fast ignition(FI) research in China and other basic science experiments. To perform FI successfully with hohlraum targets containing a golden cone, the long-pulse beam and cylindrical hohlraum as well as the short-pulse beam and cone target alignment must satisfy tight specifications(30 and 20 μm rms for each case). To explore new ICF ignition targets with six laser entrance holes(LEHs), a rotation sensor was adapted to meet the requirements of a three-dimensional target and correct beam alignment. In this paper, the strategy for aligning the nanosecond beam based on target alignment sensor(TAS) is introduced and improved to meet requirements of the picosecond lasers and the new six LEHs hohlraum targets in the SG-II-U facility. The expected performance of the alignment system is presented, and the alignment error is also discussed.

Spatio-temporal evolution of the optical field on a hohlraum wall at the rising edge of a flat-topped pulse

Considering the time delay in different hohlraum wall positions caused by oblique incidence,the spatio-temporal optical field distribution characteristics of a hohlraum wall,especially during the rising edge of a flat-topped pulse,is simulated by a fast Fourier transform method together with chromatography.Results demonstrate that beam propagation along the hohlraum wall is a push-broom process with complex dynamic spatial–temporal evolution.In the first few picoseconds,the optical intensity of the front position increases rapidly,while that of the rear position is relatively weak.The ratio R of the optical intensity during the rising edge is smaller than that of the steady state.R gradually increases and finally tends to the value of the steady state with time.Calculation also shows that,with shorter total width of the rising edge,R of the optical field decreases and the difference compared to the steady state becomes larger.The evolution is more severe with smaller angle of inclination.

Optimization of compensation for high spatial frequency in distorted wavefront using optical phase conjugation

A method is proposed to optimize the recording structure of the photorefractive volume grating to compensate high spatial frequency in the distorted wavefront by optical phase conjugation.Based on the coupled-wave equation, the diffraction efficiency of the recorded grating formed by the scattered beams in different recording structures is simulated.The theoretical results show that the recorded modulations with high spatial frequency can be significantly improved in the small recording angle.In the experiment, three recording structures with the recording angles of 7.5°, 30°, and 45° are chosen to verify the compensation effect.Compared with the reconstructed image in the large recording angle of 45°, the signal to noise ratio of the image recorded at 7.5° increases to 3.2 times of that at 45°.

Compensation method for performance degradation of optically addressed spatial light modulator induced by CW laser

In this paper,we propose an effective method to compensate for the performance degradation of optically addressed spatial light modulators(OASLMs).The thermal deposition problem usually leads to the on-off ratio reduction of amplitude OASLM,so it is difficult to achieve better results in high-power laser systems.Through the analysis of the laser-induced temperature rise model and the liquid crystal layer voltage model,it is found that reducing the driving voltage of the liquid crystal light valve and increasing the driving current of the optical writing module can compensate for the decrease of on-off ratio caused by temperature rise.This is the result of effectively utilizing the photoconductive effect of Bi_(12)SiO_(20)(BSO)crystal.The experimental results verify the feasibility of the proposed method and increase the laser withstand power of amplitude-only OASLM by about a factor of 2.5.

Numerical simulation of debris-removal trajectories on the transport mirrors in high-power laser systems

In high-power laser systems(HPLSs), understanding debris-removal trajectories is important in eliminating debris from the surfaces of transport mirrors online and keeping other optical components free from contamination. NS equations, the RNG k–ε model and the discrete phase model of the Euler–Lagrange method are used to conduct numerical simulations on the trajectories of contaminant particles of different sizes and types on the mirror surface using Fluent commercial software. A useful device is fabricated based on the simulation results. This device can capture and collect debris from the mirror surface online. Consequently, the effect of debris contamination on other optical components is avoided,cleaning time is shortened, and ultimately, the cleanliness of the mirrors in HPLSs is ensured.