Target physics results at 248 nm wavelength from the Aurora laser system high-intensity campaign

Au and Si targets have been irradiated using the Aurora KrF laser system, and diagnosed with x-ray and optical diagnostics. The x-ray diagnostics were sensitive to the 0.1--10 keV range. Initial, manually aligned results indicate significant plasma heating and intense x-ray production, with incident peak intensities on target of 1 {minus} 2 {times} 10{sup 14} W/cm{sup 2} in a focal spot of order 500 {mu}m diameter. Total energy delivered to the target in 36 of the available 48 target beams was approximately 1200 J in pulses with FWHM in the 3--5 ns range. M-band radiation was observed from Au foil targets. Initial bandwidth measurements on the laser indicate {approx}20 cm{sup {minus}1} without bandwidth enhancement efforts.