Despite the apparent simplicity of controlled fusion, there are many phenomena which have prevented its achievement. One phenomenon is laser-plasma instabilities. An investigation of one such instability, stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS), is reported here. SBS is a parametric process whereby an electromagnetic wave (the parent wave) decays into another electromagnetic wave and an ion acoustic wave (the daughter waves). SBS impedes controlled fusion since it can scatter much or all of the incident laser light, resulting in poor drive symmetry and inefficient laser-plasma coupling. It is widely believed that SBS becomes convectively unstable--that is, it grows as it traverses the plasma. Though it has yet to be definitively tested, convective theory is often invoked to explain experimental observations, even when one or more of the theory`s assumptions are violated. In contrast, the experiments reported here not only obeyed the assumptions of the theory, but were also conducted in plasmas with peak densities well below quarter-critical density. This prevented other competing or coexisting phenomena from occurring, thereby providing clearly interpretable results. These are the first SBS experiments that were designed to be both a clear test of linear convective theory and pertinent to controlled fusion research. A crucial part of this …

Thesis. Lithium fluoride crystals, with TlF added to the charge, were prepared by the Bridgman- Stockbarger method. The scintillation response to photon energies between 25 and 1250 keV for these crystals and a commercially prepared LiF (Ti) crystal was studied. The response of the LiF (Ti) crystal was compared to the response of an NE109 scintillator at 1250 keV. The dose response of the LiF (Ti) crystal was evaluated over the energy range 25 to 1250 keV. The absorption and emission spectra of the LiF (Ti) crystal are discussed. A historical review precedes the discussion. (auth)