Minimizing scatter-losses during pre-heat for magneto-inertial fusion targets
The size, temporal and spatial shape, and energy content of a laser pulse for the pre-heat phase of magneto-inertial fusion affect the ability to penetrate the window of the laser-entrance-hole and to heat the fuel behind it. High laser intensities and dense targets are subject to laser-plasma-insta...
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Veröffentlicht in: | Physics of plasmas 2018-02, Vol.25 (2) |
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Zusammenfassung: | The size, temporal and spatial shape, and energy content of a laser pulse for the
pre-heat phase of magneto-inertial fusion affect the ability to penetrate the window of
the laser-entrance-hole and to heat the fuel behind it. High laser intensities and dense
targets are subject to laser-plasma-instabilities (LPI), which can lead to an effective
loss of pre-heat energy or to pronounced heating of areas that should stay unexposed.
While this problem has been the subject of many studies over the last decades, the
investigated parameters were typically geared towards traditional laser driven Inertial
Confinement Fusion (ICF) with densities either at 10% and above or at 1% and below the
laser's critical density, electron temperatures of 3–5 keV, and laser powers near (or in
excess of) 1 × 1015 W/cm2. In contrast, Magnetized Liner Inertial
Fusion (MagLIF) [Slutz et al., Phys. Plasmas 17, 056303
(2010) and Slutz and Vesey, Phys. Rev. Lett. 108, 025003 (2012)] currently
operates at 5% of the laser's critical density using much thicker windows
(1.5–3.5 μm) than the sub-micron thick windows of traditional ICF
hohlraum targets. This article describes the Pecos target area at Sandia National
Laboratories using the Z-Beamlet Laser Facility [Rambo et al., Appl. Opt.
44(12), 2421 (2005)] as a platform to study laser induced pre-heat for
magneto-inertial fusion targets, and the related progress for Sandia's MagLIF program.
Forward and backward scattered light were measured and minimized at larger spatial scales
with lower densities, temperatures, and powers compared to LPI studies available in
literature. |
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ISSN: | 1070-664X 1089-7674 |
DOI: | 10.1063/1.5003038 |