LLNL Selected to Lead Next-Gen Extreme Ultraviolet Lithography Research

Dec. 23, 2024- 
The Department of Energy has selected a new research partnership led by LLNL that aims to lay the groundwork for the next evolution of extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography, centered around a Lab-developed system dubbed the BAT laser.

The Fire That Powers the Universe: Harnessing Inertial Fusion Energy

Dec. 1, 2024- 
It was a laser shot for the ages. By achieving fusion ignition on December 5, 2022, LLNL proved that recreating the “fire” that fuels the sun and the stars inside a laboratory on Earth was indeed scientifically possible.

ICECap Looks to Use Exascale ICF Simulations to Pioneer Digital Design

Oct. 29, 2024- 
A multidisciplinary LLNL research team is combining the power of exascale computing with AI, advanced workflows, and graphics processor acceleration to revolutionize the digital designs of high-yield ICF experiments.

‘Big Ideas Lab’ Podcast: A Two-Episode Series on Ignition

Oct. 15, 2024- 
In the next two episodes of the "Big Ideas Lab" podcast, delve into what it took to achieve ignition—an accomplishment that was over 60 years in the making—and what it means for national security and the future of clean energy.

LLNL Presents on Fusion Energy at Industry Collaboration Event

Oct. 7, 2024- 
LLNL officials gave a presentation on translating the Lab’s historic December 2022 achievement of fusion ignition into a viable source of commercial fusion power.

Research Confirms Importance of Symmetry in Pre-Ignition Fusion Experiments

Aug. 9, 2024- 
LLNL researchers have retrospectively confirmed that implosion asymmetry was a major aspect for fusion experiments before achieving ignition for the first time at NIF, the world’s most energetic laser.

When Experiments Go Quiet: Maintaining the National Ignition Facility

July 10, 2024- 
When the lasers at NIF stop firing, the facility is anything but quiet. Facility maintenance and refurbishment teams work to keep NIF as finely tuned as a Formula One racecar (story includes a video).

World’s Most Powerful Supercomputers List

May 13, 2024- 
Three new systems currently or soon-to-be sited at LLNL, including one already used to model ICF experiments at NIF, debuted on the latest Top500 list of most powerful supercomputers in the world.

The people of stockpile stewardship are the key to LLNL’s success

Sept. 28, 2022- 
The last nuclear test, code-named Divider, took place 30 years ago, on Sept. 23, 1992. That year, President Bush declared a temporary moratorium on nuclear testing, which became permanent during the Clinton administration. This ending of the era of nuclear testing was also the beginning of stockpile stewardship.

Scientific discovery for stockpile stewardship

Sept. 27, 2022- 
Scientific discovery during the Stockpile Stewardship Program maintains confidence in the nuclear deterrent without testing, brings other benefits

Developing technology to keep the nuclear stockpile safe, secure and reliable

Sept. 26, 2022- 
The last nuclear test, code-named Divider, took place 30 years ago, on Sept. 23, 1992. That year, President Bush declared a temporary moratorium on nuclear testing, which became permanent in 1995, during the Clinton administration. This ending of the era of nuclear testing coincided with a Presidential announcement of the beginning of stockpile stewardship.

New Target Facility Will Help Unlock Plutonium’s Secrets

May 31, 2022- 
Improving our understanding of the physical characteristics of plutonium as it ages is a vital aspect of maintaining the reliability of the U.S. nuclear deterrent in the absence of underground testing.

NIF and JLF User Groups Cite HED Science Successes Amid Pandemic

March 15, 2022- 
At this year’s meeting of the NIF and JLF user groups, facility leaders cited a number of HED science successes amid the challenges of the pandemic.

George Miller Receives John S. Foster Medal for National Security Contributions

Sept. 22, 2021- 
LLNL Director Emeritus George Miller, who helped lead NIF during a key period of the facility’s construction, has been named the 2021 recipient of the John S. Foster Medal for his contributions to U.S. national security.

Fusion Supports the Stockpile

July 28, 2021- 
To support the NNSA’s Stockpile Stewardship Program, weapon designers, experimentalists, and engineers turn to platforms of immense energy and engineering prowess such as NIF.

Target Fabrication Team Helped Speed NIF’s Rapid Restart

March 15, 2021- 
The LLNL Target Fabrication Team’s efforts to quickly resume production of targets was a key to the timely restart of NIF experiments following the 2020 pandemic shutdown.

Reports Recommend Stepped-Up U.S. Investment in Fusion Energy

March 8, 2021- 
An influential U.S. Department of Energy advisory committee has recommended that the nation move aggressively toward the deployment of fusion energy, including investments in technology and equipment to support one of NIF’s core missions—laying the groundwork for the development of inertial fusion energy.

NIF Conducts First-Ever Shot with Explosives

Jan. 26, 2021- 
The first-ever shot to study a high explosive sample was recently conducted at NIF. The results from the shot included novel data that will help researchers unlock the mysteries of high-explosive chemistry.

Researchers Develop X-Ray Source to Measure Extreme Temperatures at NIF

Jan. 22, 2021- 
LLNL researchers have developed a new x-ray source that can diagnose temperatures in NIF experiments that probe conditions like those at the center of planets.

General Atomics and NIF: Partners on a Mission

Nov. 18, 2020- 
NIF and General Atomics are 417 miles apart. Yet scientists and engineers from Livermore and the San Diego-based company literally and figuratively work side-by-side, helping to keep the nation secure and expand the frontiers of science.