First radiative shock experiments on the SG-II laser

Abstract We report on the design and first results from experiments looking at formation of radiative shocks Shenguang-II (SG-II) laser Shanghai Institute Optics Fine Mechanics in China. Laser-heating a two-layer CH/CH–Br foil drives $\sim 40$ km/s shock inside gas cell filled with argon an initial pressure 1 bar. The use gas-cell targets large (several millimetres) lateral axial extent allows to propagate freely without any wall interactions, permits field view image single colliding counter-propagating time-resolved, point-projection X-ray backlighting ( 20$ ?m source size, 4.3 keV photon energy). Single were imaged up 100 ns after onset drive, allowing probe growth spatial nonuniformities apex. These are compared shocks, showing symmetric drive that leads collision stagnation onward. present preliminary comparison numerical simulations radiation hydrodynamics code ARWEN, which provides expected plasma parameters for future this facility.