Nova high-speed jet experiments

We have conducted high-speed jet experiments using the Nova laser facility located at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. The experiments make use of energy deposited in a Nova hohlraum to launch a strong shock down t he axis of a cylindrical, millimeter-scale package containing a plastic/foa m interface. The passage of the shock, causes a hemispherical indentation a t the interface to invert and form a plasma jet. The jet-tip velocity is ap proximately 60 km s(-1), with a corresponding jet-tip Mach number of about 17. An X-ray backlighter foil and an electronic X-ray framing camera are us ed to radiograph the flow side-on. Vortical structures are observed, and th e development of the jet over time is measured. An additional set of experi ments was undertaken to elucidate these structures using a tracer material. Numerical simulations have been performed to provide additional insights i nto this flow and to permit examination of unmeasured quantities. The exper iments include aspects of observed astrophysical jet phenomena, which could prove useful for benchmarking codes.