On the feasibility of Ne-like XUV lasers pumped by a fs laser

Preliminary work is presented on the way towards Ne-like XUV lasing pumped by a fs laser. Our results indicate that lasing may be possible using sub-joule pumping energy, if low-Z elements (Mg to Cl) are used, leading to lasing wavelengths between 170 and 52 nm. We show that a low intensity ns-pulse; arriving on the target before the high-power fs-pulse strongly enhances the chances for ASE by heating a properly shaped preplasma.