Physics Requirements for High-Gain Inertial Fusion Target Designs

ORAL

Abstract

Recent progress in target performance of laser-direct-drive inertial confinement fusion (ICF) implosions has renewed interest in high-gain (G ~ 100) ICF target designs for various applications, including the Stockpile Stewardship Program and energy production. There are substantial differences in design parameter space between current best-performance implosions and high-gain designs; if the current implosions maximize hydroefficiency and energy coupled to the hot spot, designs with high yield will require increased mass and shell convergence and improved shell confinement. Increasing drive pressure by a factor of 2 to 3 from current laser-direct-drive implosions, which is achievable by mitigating coupling losses caused by laser–plasma interactions, offers the highest leverage in achieving the high-yield goals. This talk will review the implosion physics of high-gain designs that must be experimentally validated and discuss physics gaps that need to be addressed.

*This material is based upon work supported by the Department of Energy National Nuclear Security Administration under Award Number DE-NA0003856 and ARPA-E BETHE Grant No. DEFOA-0002212.

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Presenters

  • Valeri N Goncharov

    • University of Rochester
    • Laboratory for Laser Energetics, University of Rochester

Authors

  • Valeri N Goncharov

    • University of Rochester
    • Laboratory for Laser Energetics, University of Rochester

  • William T Trickey

    • Laboratory for Laser Energetics, University of Rochester

  • Igor V Igumenshchev

    • Lab for Laser Energetics
    • University of Rochester
    • Laboratory for Laser Energetics, University of Rochester

  • Timothy J Collins

    • Laboratory for Laser Energetics, University of Rochester
    • University of Rochester, Laboratory for Laser Energetics
    • Laboratory for Laser Energetics, U. of Rochester

  • Nathaniel R Shaffer

    • Lab for Laser Energetics
    • Lab. for Laser Energetics, U. of Rochester
    • Laboratory for Laser Energetics, University of Rochester

  • Alexander Shvydky

    • Lab for Laser Energetics
    • Laboratory for Laser Energetics, University of Rochester

  • Dustin Froula

    • University of Rochester
    • Laboratory for Laser Energetics
    • Laboratory for Laser Energetics, U. of Rochester
    • Laboratory for Laser Energetics, University of Rochester

  • Sean P Regan

    • Laboratory for Laser Energetics, University of Rochester
    • University of Rochester
    • Laboratory for Laser Energetics, U. of Rochester

  • Yousef Lawrence

    • MIT