Automated Target Measurements Contribute to LLNL's Ignition Success

An advanced technique for characterizing high-quality target capsules for NIF experiments has played an important role in LLNL's recent success in repeatedly achieving fusion ignition.

Tracing the Steps to LLNL’s Fusion Ignition Breakthrough

The inside story of how LLNL ICF researchers solved physics and engineering challenges to achieve target energy gain is told in a comprehensive Reviews of Modern Physics article.

Probing the Temperature of Materials Under Extreme Pressure at NIF

In new LLNL experiments at NIF, scientists measured the extended x-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) of copper to probe its temperature under extreme pressure. The research was published in the journal Nature Communications.

LLNL-Led Team Receives DOE Award to Establish Inertial Fusion Energy Hub

The Energy Department awarded a four-year, $16 million project to a multi-institutional team led by LLNL to accelerate IFE science and technology. This effort will be carried out by a newly established hub named STARFIRE.

High-Laser-Energy Shot Puts NIF Back on Track Toward Ignition

A record high-laser-energy NIF target shot on Sept. 19 produced about 1.2 million joules of fusion energy yield.

Video: The Beamline to Ignition

In this video, you can follow the journey of NIF’s laser beams as they increase in energy from 1 billionth of a joule to 4 million joules by the time they reach the center of the Target Chamber.

NIF’s Master Oscillator Room Upgrade Completes Key Milestone

The National Ignition Facility’s Master Oscillator Room (MOR)—the so-called “heart of the laser”—recently completed a three-year modernization project with a prominent, state-of-the-art feature being its support of direct-drive, Flexible Color Mapping (FlexCM) experiments.

Three Peer-Reviewed Papers Highlight Scientific Results of NIF’s Record Shot

The scientific results of NIF’s record experiment that achieved a record fusion energy yield of more than 1.3 megajoules (MJ) were published in three peer-reviewed papers, one in Physical Review Letters and two in Physical Review E.

Spider-Inspired Technology Inside the World’s Most Energetic Laser

Video: Fusion experiments at NIF rely on extreme precision and symmetry. This is especially true in target fabrication, considered one of the “Seven Wonders of NIF,” where components must be machined to scales as small as 1/1,000th the width of a human hair.

LLNL Helping Create a Cryo Target Capability for French Laser Facility

LLNL researchers are collaborating with the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission, known as CEA, to help develop a cryogenic target system for the CEA’s Laser Mégajoule (LMJ).

How Diamonds Are Used for Nuclear Fusion

Video: Take a look inside the target capsules used at the National Ignition Facility, where nanoscopic diamond technology is making a huge difference in some of the world's most energetic fusion experiments. More Information: NIF Video Gallery “The Threshold of Ignition,” NIF & Photon Science News Follow us on Twitter: @lasers_llnl

New Target Facility Will Help Unlock Plutonium’s Secrets

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.

Target Fabrication Precision Applied to Machining Operations Move

Machining operations for Target Fabrication were upgraded and consolidated without missing a minute of the continuous work of designing and delivering targets to the world’s largest laser.

NIF&PS Scientists Earn Early, Mid-Career Honors

LLNL's seventh annual early and mid-career awards program included five scientists whose work has made a significant impact on NIF & Photon Science research.

Gold Monoliths Lighter Than Air

LLNL researchers collaborated with target fabrication scientists to test storing, transporting, and mounting lighter-than-air gold aerogel “foam’ on targets at NIF.

NIF Installs New, Improved Shot Setup Tool

When NIF’s CMT (Campaign Management Tool) was finally retired May 3, it marked the culmination of a seven-year design and development cycle to replace the original experiment setup tool known to be complex and cumbersome.

Boosting ICF Yield with Magnetized Fuel

NIF Senior Scientist John D. Moody writes in APS Physics about NIF researchers pursuing magnetized fusion fuel as a potentially disruptive way to boost the performance of laser-driven implosions. Read more...

Team Improves Polar Direct Drive Fusion Neutron Sources for NIF

Scientists from LLNL and the Laboratory for Laser Energetics (LLE) are working to improve polar direct drive neutron sources for use on NIF experiments.

Laser-Heated Foams Help HED Science, ICF Goals

LLNL scientists tested laser-heated additive manufactured foams to help advance HED science and support the ICF program goal of achieving ignition in the lab.

Target Fabrication Team Helped Speed NIF’s Rapid Restart

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.