Abstract
A model of energy gain induced by fast ignition of thermonuclear burn in compressed deuterium-tritium fuel, is used to show the potential for 300× gain with a driver energy of 1 MJ, if the National Ignition Facility (NIF) were to be adapted for fast ignition. The physics of fast ignition has been studied using a petawatt laser facility at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Laser plasma interaction in a preformed plasma on a solid target leads to relativistic self-focusing evidenced by x-ray images. Absorption of the laser radiation transfers energy to an intense source of relativistic electrons. Good conversion efficiency into a wide angular distribution is reported. Heating by the electrons in solid density CD2 produces 0.5 to 1 keV temperature, inferred from the D-D thermo-nuclear neutron yield.
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Key, M.H., Campbell, E.M., Cowan, T.E. et al. The Potential of Fast Ignition and Related Experiments with a Petawatt Laser Facility. Journal of Fusion Energy 17, 231–236 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1021862430021
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1021862430021