NIF and Photon Science
NIF’s Optics Meet the Demands of Increased Laser Energy
Part 5: Hardening NIF’s optics to withstand ever-increasing laser energy and the debris caused by experiments was another key to achieving ignition (For previous stories, see The Age of Ignition: Inside NIF’s Fusion Breakthrough).
Part 4: To achieve fusion ignition, NIF’s laser system needed to operate flawlessly at both ends of the performance spectrum.
A standing-room-only crowd at the recent SPIE Photonics West convention listened raptly to a presentation about how fusion ignition was achieved at NIF.
LLNL’s research and development of the Big Aperture Thulium (BAT) laser has been living up to its name, delivering big results in a small package.
ICF Chief Scientist Omar Hurricane described the research leading to NIF’s fusion ignition milestone in an International Atomic Energy Agency webinar.
A newly released report finds the historic fusion ignition achievement gives the U.S. a “unique opportunity” to further lead the pursuit of inertial fusion energy.
The U.S. Department of Energy and the National Nuclear Security Administration announced the achievement of fusion ignition at NIF on Dec. 5.
Follow the journey of NIF’s laser beams as they dramatically increase in energy on their way to the center of the Target Chamber.
