Interaction of laser-produced plasma clouds in vacuum and background medium

An investigation into the interaction between two plasma clouds expanding in vacuum and background gas (10>p>10-4 Torr) is described. The spatial structure of the radiation emitted by the interacting plasma clouds was determined. The radiation was in the form of spectral lines due to Be I-III and Al I-III ions and it was found that the radiation emitted by ions with a given degree of ionization was localized. A mathematical model of the process was developed and used to obtain dynamic, ionization and optical characteristics of the interacting clouds. Qualitative agreement between calculation and experiment has been achieved.