EVOLUTION OF ELECTRON-TEMPERATURE AND ELECTRON-DENSITY IN INDIRECTLY DRIVEN SPHERICAL IMPLOSIONS

Using spectroscopic measurements to extract electron density and tempe rature, we construct simulation-independent time histories of the asse mbly and disassembly phase of an imploding core, To achieve this, we s how the hot dense plasma produced by indirectly imploding gas-filled m icrosphere is a reproducible and reliable plasma source. We further sh ow that this plasma is suitable for detailed hydrodynamic and spectros copic studies, and that the plasma provides a useful testbed for nonlo cal thermodynamic equilibrium plasma studies at extreme conditions.