Accessing High Pressure States Relevant to Core Conditions in the Giant Planets

We have designed an experimental technique to use on the National Ignition Facility (NIF) laser to achieve very high pressure (P sub(max) > 10 Mbar = 1000 GPa), dense states of matter at moderate temperatures (T < 0.5 eV = 6000 K), relevant to the core conditions of the giant planets. A discussion of the conditions in the interiors of the giant planets is given, and an experimental design that can approach those conditions is described.