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The properties of high energy density plasma are under increasing scrutiny inrecent years due to their importance to our understanding of stellar interiors,the cores of giant planets$^{1}$, and the properties of hot plasma in inertialconfinement fusion devices$^2$. When matter is heated by X-rays, electrons inthe inner shells are ionized before the valence electrons. Ionization from theinside out creates atoms or ions with empty internal electron shells, which areknown as hollow atoms (or ions)$^{3,4,5}$. Recent advances in free-electronlaser (FEL) technology$^{6,7,8,9}$ have made possible the creation of condensedmatter consisting predominantly of hollow atoms. In this Letter, we demonstratethat such exotic states of matter, which are very far from equilibrium, canalso be formed by more conventional optical laser technology when the laserintensity approaches the radiation dominant regime$^{10}$. Suchphoton-dominated systems are relevant to studies of photoionized plasmas foundin active galactic nuclei and X-ray binaries$^{11}$. Our results promotelaser-produced plasma as a unique ultra-bright x-ray source for future studiesof matter in extreme conditions as well as for radiography of biologicalsystems and for material science studies$^{12,13,14,15}$.

Exotic dense matter states pumped by relativistic laser plasma in the radiation dominant regime