Plasma screening in mid-charged ions observed by K-shell line emission
Abstract
Abstract Dense plasma environment affects the electronic structure of ions via variations of the microscopic electrical fields, also known as plasma screening . This effect can be either estimated by simplified analytical models, or by computationally expensive and to date unverified numerical calculations. We have experimentally quantified plasma screening from the energy shifts of the bound-bound transitions in matter driven by the x-ray free electron laser (XFEL). This was enabled by identification of detailed electronic configurations of the observed K $$\upalpha$$ α , K $$\upbeta$$ β and K $$\upgamma$$ γ lines. This work paves the way for improving plasma screening models including connected effects like ionization potential depression and continuum lowering, which will advance the understanding of atomic physics in the Warm Dense Matter regime.
Fields of Study & Subjects
Atomic and Molecular Physics
Laser-Plasma Interactions and Diagnostics
Laser-induced spectroscopy and plasma
Publication details
- Journal / source
- Scientific Reports
- Publisher
- Springer Science and Business Media LLC
- Volume
- 16
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 5873–5873
- Publication date
- 10 February 2026
- Language
- EN