Features and Limiting Characteristics of the Heating of a Substance by a Laser-Accelerated Fast Electron Beam

The features of plasma formation in a substance heated by a laser-accelerated fast electron beam have been studied. These features are related to the ratio of the heating rate to the rate of energy loss because of radiation processes and electronic thermal conductivity, which are governed by the dependence of the energy of the heating beam particles on the beam intensity, which is characteristic of laser-driven electron acceleration. It has been shown that energy losses increase with the beam intensity and significantly limit the maximum temperature of the formed plasma. The possibility of generating an intense γ-radiation pulse of a nonnuclear origin because of the bremsstrahlung of laser-accelerated electrons has been discussed.