Hypersonic gasdynamic studies in a gas flow arising from the application of an intense unfocused laser pulse to a film or to the surface of a bulk medium
Askar'yan G. A. , Korolev M. G. , Yakushkin K. L
It is suggested that a fast pulsed gas flow with a velocity ~ 106 cm/s can be produced by applying an intense unfocused laser pulse to the surface of a bulk medium or to a film which can evaporate. This possibility has been studied. The properties of this flow are described. Preliminary experiments on hypersonic flow around objects and on "cumulative" effects are described.