Calculations of photoionization, photoexcitation, and gain production in a neon gas cell irradiated by a sodium Z-pinch on Saturn

摘要

The sodium-neon resonantly photopumped system is one of the most attractive possibilities for development of a photon pumped soft x-ray laser. Using a one-dimensional self-consistent radiation hydrodynamics model the time-dependent temperature, density, ionization state, and gain for a neon gas cell exposed to an intense sodium Z-pinch is calculated. Time-integrated K shell neon spectra obtained on Saturn at Sandia National Laboratories show strong evidence of photopumping.