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564.


Problem 41.35 (RHK)


High-power lasers are used to compress gas plasmas by radiation pressure. The reflectivity of a plasma is unity if the electron density is high enough. A laser generating pulses of radiation of peak power 1.5 GW is focussed onto of high-electron-density plasma. We have to find the pressure exerted on the plasma.


Solution:           Click For PDF Version

It is given that the reflectivity of the plasma is unity. If the power of the laser is P the momentum transferred per second by the laser beam to the plasma will be

where c is the speed of electromagnetic waves. As a laser beam of peak power is focussed onto of high-electron-density plasma the pressure exerted on the plasma will be