PLASMA DIAGNOSTICS WITH SPECTRAL PROFILE CALCULATIONS

A method is presented to interpret spectroscopic measurements to obtai n a diagnostic of conditions in hot, dense plasmas using a fast comput er code to calculate the theoretical profiles of the ionic spectra emi tted. The method employed involves the computation of the spectral sha pe of the ionic transitions with the plasma electron temperature and d ensity as parameters, a convolution of this theoretical profile with t he instrument function, and a comparison of the resulting profile with the experimental spectrum. The computation is performed using an atom ic physics data set coupled to a fast version of a line shape code tha t is capable of considering an extremely large number of sublevels for each transition. The plasma electron density and temperature are the only free parameters and the complex shape of the calculated line prof ile serves as a signature of the plasma conditions. Published spectral measurements of several ionic transitions of Li-like C and N in a hyd rogen plasma are considered as an example. For certain of these transi tions, the possibility of the observation of an ion dynamics effect on the ionic emitters is discussed.