Hot dense matter generated by high-power light ion beams

The hydrodynamic response of thin plane targets to the action of the high-power proton beam of the Karlsruhe Light Ion Facility KALIF has been investigated using time-resolved one-dimensional (1-D) and two-dimensional (2-D) laser Doppler velocimetry with subnanosecond temporal resolution. A new method for shock compressibility (Hugoniot) measurements with micrometer-thick impacters and transparent barriers has been used. Experimental velocity histories have been compared to numerical simulations accounting for thermal conductivity, equation of state, and stopping power of dense strongly coupled plasma.