Polarization properties of the Ly-α line from sulphur plasmas driven by high-intensity, ultrashort-duration laser pulses1This article is part of a Special Issue on the 10th International Colloquium on Atomic Spectra and Oscillator Strengths for Astrophysical and Laboratory Plasmas.
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We report on a modeling study of the polarization properties of the Ly-α line in sulphur. The lower energy (J = 1/2) fine-structure component is unpolarized, while the polarization degree of the higher energy component (J = 3/2) can serve as a signature of an anisotropic electron distribution. We calculate the polarization degree of the J = 3/2 component with the help of a magnetic-sublevel population atomic kinetics model for plasma conditions that can arise in laser-produced plasma experiments. This demonstrates how observed polarization properties of the Ly-α could be connected with the characteristics of an anisotropic electron distribution.
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