Subsonic radiation waves in neon

Numerical methods are used to investigate the propagation of plane subsonic radiation waves in neon from an obstacle in the direction opposite to the incident radiation of Nd and CO₂ lasers. An analysis is made of the influence of the power density of the incident radiation (in the range 10–100 MW/cm²) and of the initial density of neon (beginning from the normal valuep ρ₀ up to 10ρ₀) on the various characteristics of subsonic radiation waves. It is shown that waves traveling in neon can provide an effective source of radiation with a continuous spectrum and an efficiency of ~ 12–27% in the ultraviolet range (with a characteristic photon energy ~ 5–10 eV).