LIFT Director Tammy Ma Featured in Washington Post’s 'Post Next' 2026

The Washington Post profiled Tammy Ma, director of LLNL's Livermore Institute for Fusion Technology, as part of the newspaper's "Post Next" list of 50 people who will define the stories of 2026. Read more ...

When Lasers Cross: LLNL Finds a Brighter Way to Measure Plasma

LLNL scientists have tested a new crossed-laser technique that measures plasma conditions in a single shot, with signals more than a billion times stronger than traditional Thomson scattering.

LLNL and Fraunhofer ILT Partner on Next-Generation Fusion Lasers

LLNL and Germany’s Fraunhofer Institute for Laser Technology (ILT) are joining forces to cross-validate their sophisticated laser simulation models.

LLNL Conducts Milestone Nuclear Survivability Experiment at NIF

LLNL conducted an experiment at NIF to assess the ability of U.S. nuclear weapons to survive encounters with adversary missile defenses and reach their targets, demonstrating a new capability that advances stockpile modernization.

Vincent Tang Returns to Lead NIF&PS Directorate

LLNL Director Kim Budil named Vincent Tang as the principal associate director (PAD) to lead the NIF and Photon Science directorate.

Using AI for Real-Time Control of Rapid-Fire Lasers

In a major step forward for HED science and inertial fusion energy, LLNL researchers and their colleagues demonstrated how machine learning and AI could exert instantaneous control of a rapid-fire laser system.

LLNL Receives Energy Department Funding for Fusion Energy Research

The U.S. Department of Energy announced $134 million in funding for two programs designed to secure U.S. leadership in emerging fusion technologies and innovation: FIRE and INFUSE.

Molecular Simulations Reveal Why Graphite Outshines Diamond

A study published in Nature Communications reveals that graphite can spontaneously nucleate. Understanding the fine lines that separate graphite from diamond from liquid molten carbon is critical for modeling experiments at NIF.

LLNL Physicist Receives Edward Teller Award

LLNL physicist Hye-Sook Park has been awarded the Edward Teller Award for 2025 by the American Nuclear Society.

New Book Documents Optics Innovations That Were Integral to Ignition

Just published: In Optic Technologies Enabling Fusion Ignition, veteran LLNL optics and laser experts tell the comprehensive story of how they were able to push the performance of those optics beyond what many thought was possible.

LLNL Researchers Employed an AI-Driven Model to Predict Fusion Ignition Shot

LLNL researchers employed an AI-driven model that used deep learning and a “cognitive simulation” framework to successfully predict fusion ignition days ahead of the historic 2022 shot at NIF, according to a new study in Science.

Science & Technology Review: Beyond Ignition

The July/August 2025 edition of LLNL's Science & Technology Review magazine examines the many facets of ignition research in the era beyond ignition. Read more ...

LLNL Pushes Frontier of Fusion Target Design with AI

Researchers at LLNL have reached a milestone in combining AI with fusion target design by deploying AI agents on two of the world’s most powerful supercomputers to automate and accelerate inertial confinement fusion experiments at NIF.

LANL, LLNL Achieve Fusion Ignition with Groundbreaking Approach

A Los Alamos National Laboratory-led team working in conjunction with LLNL has achieved ignition at NIF. The team conducted an experiment that generated a yield of 2.4 MJ of energy and created a self-sustaining feedback loop called a burning plasma. Read more ...

Big Ideas Lab Podcast: How AI Is Reshaping Science at LLNL

As the world moves from the Information Age to the Data Age, AI is not only revolutionizing society—it’s fundamentally transforming how LLNL researchers approach science and played a key role in the achievement of fusion ignition.

LLNL Research Sets New Gold Standard to Narrow ICF ‘Drive Deficit’

LLNL researchers have identified the primary physical contributor to discrepancies between simulations and experimental results in inertial confinement fusion experiments.

LLNL Experts Foster National Fusion Energy Ecosystem at IFE-STAR Conference

More than 200 fusion energy experts from LLNL and other national labs, academia, and the private sector gathered in Colorado to assess the state of the art in inertial fusion energy.

Nuclear Fusion Journal Recognizes LLNL Paper

LLNL nuclear engineer Charles Yeamans and co-authors G. Elijah Kemp, Zachary Walters, Heather Whitley, Patrick McKenty, Emma Garcia, Yujia Yang, Stephen Craxton, and Brent Blue.have been recognized with the 2024 Nuclear Fusion Award for outstanding work published in the journal.

LLNL Hosts Workshop to Shape the Future of Diode-Pumped Laser Technology

LLNL recently hosted a workshop to assemble the world’s top experts in diode-pumped solid-state laser (DPSSL) systems, a key technology for the future of inertial fusion research and energy.

Big Ideas Lab Podcast Takes on Tech Spinoffs and Partnerships

The Big Ideas Lab podcast takes a deep dive into how the Innovation and Partnerships Office (IPO) facilitates tech transfer at LLNL and some of the most impactful success stories, including one startup inspired by research into protecting NIF's optical components from laser damage.