New opacity measurement principle for LMJ-PETAL laser facility

TL;DR

This paper introduces the Double Ablation Front (DAF) technique, a novel laser-driven method to replicate solar interior conditions for opacity measurements, enhancing understanding of stellar energy transport.

Contribution

The paper presents a new laser-based approach, DAF, capable of achieving solar radiative zone conditions for opacity studies, which was not previously possible.

Findings

Simulations show DAF can reach solar radiative zone conditions.

High stability of temperature and density in the generated plasma.

Potential to measure iron and oxygen absorption spectra.

Abstract

Stellar seismology reveals some interior properties of thousands of solar-type stars but the solar seismic sound speed stays puzzling since a decade as it disagrees with the Standard Solar Model (SSM) prediction. One of the explanations of this disagreement may be found in the treatment of the transport of radiation from the solar core to the surface. As the same framework is used for other stars, it is important to check precisely the reliability of the interacting cross sections of photons with each species in order to ensure the energy transport for temperature T > 2 - 10$^6$ K and density $\rho$ > 0.2 g/cm$^3$. In this paper, we propose a new technique to reach the domain of temperature and density found in the solar radiative interior. This technique called the Double Ablation Front (DAF) is based on a high conversion of the laser energy into X-rays thanks to moderated Z material irradiated by laser intensity between 1.5 $\times$ 10$^{15}$ W/cm$^2$ and 4 $\times$ 10$^{15}$ W/cm$^2$. This high conversion creates, in addition to the electronic front a second ablation front in the moderated Z material. Between the two fronts there is a plateau of density and temperature that we exploit to heat a sample of iron or of oxide. The first simulations realized with the hydrodynamic code CHIC show that this technique allows to reach conditions equivalent to half the radiative zone of the Sun with high stability both in time and space. We examine the possibility to measure both iron and oxygen absorption spectra.