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A middle-aged Asian man with small wire framed glasses stares seriously at the camera
Chikang Li
Senior Research Scientist
li@psfc.mit.edu
617-253-0934
NW17-239
https://www-internal.psfc.mit.edu/research/hedp/
Education

B.S. Sichuan University, 1982
M.S. Jilin University, 1985
Ph.D. MIT, 1993

Expertise

Experimental and theoretical studies of high-energy-density physics; laboratory astrophysics; dynamics of inertial-confinement-fusion implosions.

Awards
  • Fellow, American Physical Society.
  • John Dawson Award for Excellence in Plasma Physics Research, 2017.

Dr. Chikang Li's research interests are in experimental and theoretical studies of high-energy-density (HED) physics and in the dynamics of plasmas in inertial-confinement-fusion (ICF) implosions and in astrophysically relevant laboratory plasmas. After developing theoretical models for charged particles interacting with dense plasmas, he has been deeply involved in designing and building novel charged-particle diagnostics for laser-produced plasmas at the Omega laser facility and at the National Ignition Facility (NIF); he then used these technologies to delineate dynamics and critical parameters of ICF implosions, such as areal density, areal density asymmetries, and mix.  His recent research has focused on using monoenergetic proton radiography to study the generation, evolution and, in some cases, the instability growth of spontaneously-generated electric and magnetic fields; the reconnection of MG fields in interacting plasma bubbles; the evolution of areal density and internal electric fields in directly driven implosions; evolving fields and jet flows in laser-driven hohlraums; and the evolution of astrophysical jets in laboratory scaled experiments. He has authored/coauthored more than 290 peer-reviewed journal papers. He was Chair (2011-2012) of High-Energy-Density Science Association (HEDSA). He is a Fellow of the American Physical Society (DPP 2006). His is a recipient of John Dawson Award for Excellence in Plasma Physics Research (APS 2017).

  • C. K. Li et. al., “Collisionless Shocks Driven by Supersonic Plasma Flows with Self-Generated Magnetic Fields,” Phys. Rev. Lett.  123, 055002 (2019).
  • C. K. Li et. al., “Scaled laboratory experiments explain the kink behavior of the Crab Nebula jet”.  Nature Communications 7, 13081 (2016).
  • C. K. Li et. al., “Structure and Dynamics of Colliding Plasma Jets,” Phys. Rev. Lett.  111, 235003 (2013).
  • C. K. Li et. al., “Impeding Hohlraum Plasma Stagnation in Inertial Confinement Fusion,” Phys. Rev. Lett.  108, 025001 (2012).
  • C. K. Li et. al., “Charged-Particle Probing of X-ray Driven Inertial-Fusion Implosions”, Science 327, 1231 (2010).
  • C. K. Li et. al., “Observations of Electromagnetic Fields and Plasma Flow in Hohlraums with Proton Radiography,” Phys. Rev. Lett. 102, 205001 (2009).
  • C. K. Li et. al., “Mononoenergetic-Proton Radiography Measurements of Implosion Dynamics in Direct-Drive Inertial-Confinement Fusion,” Phys. Rev. Lett. 100, 225001 (2008).
  • C. K. Li et. al., “Observation of Megagauss Field Topology Changes due to Magnetic Reconnection in Laser-Produced Plasmas,” Phys. Rev. Lett.  99, 055001 (2007).
  • C. K. Li et. al., “Observation of the Decay Dynamics and Instabilities of Megagauss Field Structures in Laser-Produced Plasmas,” Phys. Rev. Lett.  99, 015001 (2007).
  • C. K. Li et. al., “Measuring E and B Fields in Laser-Produced Plasmas with Monoenergetic Proton Radiography,” Phys. Rev. Lett.  97, 135003 (2006).
  • C. K. Li et. al., “Effects of Nonuniform Illumination on Implosion Asymmetry for Direct-Drive Inertial Confinement Fusion,” Phys. Rev. Lett.  92, 205001 (2004).
  • C. K. Li et. al., “Effects of Fuel-Shell Mix upon Direct-Drive, Spherical Implosions on OMEGA,” Phys. Rev. Lett.  89, 165002 (2002).
  • C. K. Li et. al., “Fokker-Planck Equation for Moderately-Coupled Plasmas,” Phys. Rev. Lett. 70, 3063 (1993).
  • C. K. Li et. al., “Charged-Particle Stopping Powers in Inertial Confinement Fusion Plasmas,” Phys. Rev. Lett. 70, 3059 (1993).
1.     C. K. Li --- Invited talk in 61st Annual Meeting of the APS Division of Plasma Physics, October 21-25, 2019 Fort Lauderdale, Florida

2.     C. K. Li --- Plenary talk in 3rd European Conference on Plasma Diagnostics (ECPD) 6-10 May 2019, Lisbon, Portugal

3.     C. K. Li --- Plenary talk at Fourth international Conference on Matter and Radiation at Extremes, Heifei, China 2019

4.     C. K. Li --- Invited talk at the First LMJ-PETAL User Meeting, Bordeaux, France 2018

5.     C. K. Li --- Invited talk in OMEGA User Group at LLE, Rochester, New York 2018

6.     C. K. Li --- Plenary talk at Third international Conference on Matter and Radiation at Extremes, Qingdao China 2018

7.     C. K. Li --- Invited talk at Second Kinetic workshop, Santa Fe, New Mexico 2018

8.     C. K. Li --- Invited talk at Second International Conference on Matter and Radiation at Extremes, Beijing China 2017

9.     C. K. Li --- Invited talk at 6th Workshop on Magnetic Field in Laboratory High Energy Density Physics, Moscow, Russia 2017

10.   C. K. Li --- Plenary talk in 3th International Conference on High-Energy-Density Physics at Shenzheng, China 2016.

11.   C. K. Li --- Invited talk at first stopping power workshop, Livermore, California 2016

12.   C. K. Li --- Invited talk at First Kinetic workshop, Livermore, California 2016

13.   C. K. Li --- Invited talk at First International Conference on Matter and Radiation at Extremes, Chengdu China 2016

14.   C. K. Li --- Invited talk at Magnetic fields in ICF workshop, Livermore, California 2016

15.   C. K. Li --- Invited talk at 18th International Congress on Plasma Physics, Kaohsiung, Taiwan 2016

16.   C. K. Li --- Invited talk in 57th APS Annual Meeting of Division of Plasma Physics at Savanna, Georgia 2015.

17.   C. K. Li --- Plenary talk in 25st IAEA Fusion Energy Conference at St Petersburg, Russia 2014.

18.   C. K. Li --- Invited talk in 10th International Conference on High Energy Density Laboratory Astrophysics (HEDLA) Bordeaux, France 2014.

19.   C. K. Li --- Invited talk in the 8th Internal Inertial Science and Application Conference at Nara, Japan 2013.

20.   C. K. Li --- Invited talk in 37th European Physical Society Annual at Espoo, Finland 2013.

21.   C. K. Li --- Invited talk in 4thInternational Conference on High-Energy-Density Physics at Saint Mano, France 2013.

22.   C. K. Li --- Plenary talk in 1stInternational Conference on High-Energy-Density Physics at Beijing, China 2012.

23.   C. K. Li --- Invited talk in the 7th Internal Inertial Science and Application Conference at Bordeaux, France 2011

24.   C. K. Li --- Invited talk in 11th International Workshop on Fast Ignition of Fusion Targets at Shanghai, China 2010.

25.  C. K. Li --- Invited talk in 37th European Physical Society Annual at Dublin, Ireland 2010.