Experiments and simulations of radiative shocks

When shocks propagate at a sufficiently high velocity, radiation can significantly alter their structure. The radiation rapidly cools the shocked material, and the overall compression produced by the shock, which is limited to a factor of 4 for a simple hydrodynamic shock in a monatomic gas, can easily reach a factor of 25 or more. In addition, the radiation pre-heats the material ahead of the shock. This paper provides an overview of efforts at the Center for Radiative Shock Hydrodynamics at the University of Michigan to study the physics of radiative shocks propagating through plasma. This study is motivated by a desire to understand radiative shocks in astrophysical environments, particularly shocks emerging from supernova explosions. This paper will describe both laboratory experiments with high-power lasers and numerical simulations designed to study radiative shocks.