GISAXS

XFEL studies of the interaction of ultra-intense laser radiation with solids 

Ultra-intense laser beams interacting with solids can create dense and highly relativistic plasmas that show unique dynamical and structural properties for the duration of a few femtoseconds. Such extreme states of matter exist for example in the interior of stars and other astrophysical objects but are also highly relevant for developing new sources of ion beams e.g. for radiation therapy. In collaboration with the Helmholtz Center Dresden-Rossendorf and the European XFEL, we study the possibility to investigate such extreme states of matter using X-ray free-electron laser sources.

see e.g.

Observation of ultrafast solid-density plasma dynamics using femtosecond X-ray pulses from a free-electron laser T. Kluge, C. Rödel, M. Rödel, A. Pelka, E.E. McBride, L.B. Fletcher, M. Harmand, A. Krygier, A. Higginbotham, M. Bussmann, E. Galtier, E: Gamboa, A.L. Garcia, M. Garten, S.H. Glenzer, C. Gutt, H.J. Lee, B. Nagler, W. Schumaker, M. Zacharias, U. Schramm, T.E. CowanPhys. Rev. X 8, 031068 (2018)