Tracking the complete evolution of electromagnetic instability in an ultra-intense laser-driven plasma

Shaikh Moniruzzaman; Lad Amit D.; Mandal Devshree; Jana Kamalesh; Sarkar Deep; Das Amita; Kumar G. Ravindra

doi:10.1063/5.0285819

Volume 11 Issue 2

Mar. 2026

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Shaikh Moniruzzaman, Lad Amit D., Mandal Devshree, Jana Kamalesh, Sarkar Deep, Das Amita, Kumar G. Ravindra. Tracking the complete evolution of electromagnetic instability in an ultra-intense laser-driven plasma[J]. Matter and Radiation at Extremes, 2026, 11(2): 027202. doi: 10.1063/5.0285819

Citation:

Shaikh Moniruzzaman, Lad Amit D., Mandal Devshree, Jana Kamalesh, Sarkar Deep, Das Amita, Kumar G. Ravindra. Tracking the complete evolution of electromagnetic instability in an ultra-intense laser-driven plasma[J]. Matter and Radiation at Extremes, 2026, 11(2): 027202. doi: 10.1063/5.0285819

Citation:

Shaikh Moniruzzaman, Lad Amit D., Mandal Devshree, Jana Kamalesh, Sarkar Deep, Das Amita, Kumar G. Ravindra. Tracking the complete evolution of electromagnetic instability in an ultra-intense laser-driven plasma[J]. Matter and Radiation at Extremes, 2026, 11(2): 027202. doi: 10.1063/5.0285819

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Tracking the complete evolution of electromagnetic instability in an ultra-intense laser-driven plasma

doi: 10.1063/5.0285819

1.
Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, 1 Homi Bhabha Road, Mumbai 400005, India
2.
Institute for Plasma Research, Bhat, Gandhinagar 382428, India
3.
Department of Physics, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, Hauz Khas, New Delhi 110016, India

More Information

Corresponding author: a)Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed: amita@iitd.ac.in and grk@tifr.res.in
Received Date: 2025-06-17
Accepted Date: 2025-12-11

Available Online: 2026-05-11

Publish Date: 2026-03-01

Abstract

Abstract

Plasmas, the most common state of matter in the observable universe, are subject to instabilities of various types: hydrodynamic, magnetohydrodynamic, and electromagnetic. Our limited success in understanding these is due to the lack of direct experimental information on their origins and evolution. Here, we present direct spatially resolved measurements of the femtosecond evolution of the electromagnetic beam-driven instability that arises from the interaction of forward and return currents in an ultrahigh-intensity laser-produced plasma. We track its evolution from the initial linear stage to the later nonlinear stage by measuring the spatiotemporal evolution of the giant (megagauss) magnetic field created in the interaction process. Our experimental findings and numerical simulations are the first to indicate the observed instability triggered by the emission of electromagnetic radiation, like those known in the context of gravitational interaction, where the emission of gravitational radiation drives specific negative-energy modes in rotating black holes or neutron stars.

Conflict of Interest
The authors have no conflicts to disclose.
Author Contributions
Moniruzzaman Shaikh: Conceptualization (equal); Data curation (equal); Formal analysis (equal); Investigation (equal); Methodology (equal); Resources (equal); Supervision (equal); Validation (equal); Visualization (equal); Writing – original draft (equal); Writing – review & editing (equal). Amit D. Lad: Data curation (supporting); Methodology (supporting). Devshree Mandal: Investigation (supporting); Software (lead); Visualization (supporting). Kamalesh Jana: Data curation (supporting). Deep Sarkar: Data curation (supporting). Amita Das: Conceptualization (supporting); Funding acquisition (supporting); Project administration (supporting); Software (supporting); Supervision (supporting); Validation (lead); Writing – original draft (lead); Writing – review & editing (lead). G. Ravindra Kumar: Conceptualization (lead); Data curation (supporting); Formal analysis (supporting); Funding acquisition (lead); Investigation (lead); Methodology (lead); Project administration (lead); Resources (lead); Supervision (lead); Validation (lead); Visualization (supporting); Writing – original draft (lead); Writing – review & editing (lead).
The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

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