X-ray laser produces temperatures hotter than the sun's corona

There is lots of research around the globe that focuses on lasers and their application. The laser is being investigated for all sorts of uses, including weapons. Some of the research that involves lasers aims to recreate conditions of all sorts that involve high temperatures and exotic matter.

Scientists at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory have used a laser to create insanely high temperatures. The laser used is an X-ray laser, and it was fired at a piece of foil that is thinner than a strand of spider silk. Despite how thin the foil was, the team was able to reach temperatures in the same area as the corona of the sun.

The x-ray laser created a temperature of 3.6 million degrees Fahrenheit. The high temperatures were created with rapid pulses from the laser beam and created a material called hot dense matter. Hot dense matter is said to be the same sort of material found deep inside stars and gas giant planets.

[via Wired]