High precision measurement of proton stopping power in carbon at 1 Tpa on the NIF*

The transport properties of warm dense matter (WDM) are of fundamental importance to our theoretical understanding of plasma physics. These properties can be probed by investigating the stopping power of charged particles as they traverse WDM. Experiments conducted at the NIF used a monoenergetic proton backlighter to directly measure stopping power in shock compressed carbon samples. Measurements of both diamond and graphite samples were made. These experiments provide the best characterization of proton stopping in WDM to date. The results of the experiments are compared to different theoretical predictions to constrain the physics of importance in this regime.