Physics of Intense Beams in Plasmas is a comprehensive description of the interaction between extremely intense particle beams and plasmas. The emphasis is on experimental beam-plasma physics, but the necessary theory is also explained-much of which is innovative and original. Central to the book is the discussion of beam instabilities, emphasizing their hydrodynamic nature.

An exploratory experiment has been performed on the propagation of intense relativistic electron beams through an ionized medium. The beam was produced on the Cornell facility and consisted of a 50 kAmp stream of 350 keV electrons. The initial plasma was produced by a conical theta pinch gun located 1.5 m downstream of the diode and it is estimated that the initial electron density at beam injection was about 10(exp 13) cu cm. Beam propagation was observed photographically, on an X-ray diode at the end of the tube, and on magnetic loops along the tube. Results suggest that the bulk of the beam propagates down the tube at speeds of 1.8 x 10(exp 8) m/sec. The magnetic probe signals indicate that there is appreciable counter streaming current within the plasma volume.

With the advent of laser and maser, the wave-plasma interaction emerged as a major rich field of research. To explore the possibility of laser driven fusion, laser-plasma interaction became a subject of worldwide research, revealing many novel nonlinear phenomena including generation and saturation of plasma instabilities, electron acceleration, and ion Coulomb explosion. The work presented in this thesis is related to intense laser-plasma and electron beam-plasma interaction. The development of intense short pulse laser and high current, high-energy electron beams has allowed exploration of new regimes of laser and beam plasma interaction. Enormous progress has been made in inertial confinement fusion, plasma heating, X-ray lasers, free electron laser and charged particle accelerators. In these applications parametric instabilities, self-focusing, self phase modulation and other non-linear phenomena are important. The present thesis deals with these phenomena. This work is relevant to laser-driven fusion, charged particle acceleration, and laboratory plasma heating.

Recent scientific and technical advances have made it possible to create matter in the laboratory under conditions relevant to astrophysical systems such as supernovae and black holes. These advances will also benefit inertial confinement fusion research and the nation's nuclear weapon's program. The report describes the major research facilities on which such high energy density conditions can be achieved and lists a number of key scientific questions about high energy density physics that can be addressed by this research. Several recommendations are presented that would facilitate the development of a comprehensive strategy for realizing these research opportunities.

Physics of Intense Beams in Plasmas is a comprehensive description of the interaction between extremely intense particle beams and plasmas. The emphasis is on experimental beam-plasma physics, but the necessary theory is also explained-much of which is innovative and original. Central to the book is the discussion of beam instabilities, emphasizing their hydrodynamic nature.

A Solid Compendium of Advanced Diagnostic and Simulation ToolsExploring the most exciting and topical areas in this field, Laser-Plasma Interactions focuses on the interaction of intense laser radiation with plasma. After discussing the basic theory of the interaction of intense electromagnetic radiation fields with matter, the book covers three ap