Research Progress of Laboratory Astrophysics by Taking Advantage of Short Pulse Lasers

With the development of Chirped Pulse Amplification (CPA), the laser power density has increased dramatically, which makes the conditions for using short-pulse lasers to conduct laboratory astrophysics research increasingly mature. A short pulse laser interacting with a target can produce relativistic particles (electrons, protons, neutrons) and intense radiation (X-ray, gamma-ray). These processes in experiments correspond to some extreme astronomical phenomena. The developments of laboratory astrophysics using short-pulse lasers are briefly introduced, such as (1) nuclear processes in astrophysical objects; (2) spectral studies of hollow ions; (3) collisionless shock waves; and (4) diagnostics. These developments demonstrate the potential of short-pulse lasers for performing a number of experiments in the realms of laboratory astrophysics.