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Development of Direct Drive, High-Gain Capsules for Inertial Fusion: A Materials Challenge

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Abstract

The application of Inertial Confinement Fusion to power production requires the development of a high-yield fusion capsule. Theoretical design calculations suggest that a single shell capsule with a uniformly distributed deuterium-tritium (DT) fuel layer on the inside surface could give the desired high-gain performance when directly driven with 0.35 µm laser light. This design requires operation at cryogenic temperatures necessary to condense DT (20–30 K) and a means of levitating the fuel layer inside the capsule. On e recently suggested method for making this capsule is to use a rigid foam matrix to support the condensed DT in a spherical shell configuration. For such a capsule to be successfully fielded, a number of critical materials problems must be solved.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, USA

    J. H. Campbell (Associate program leader for materials development and target fabrication in the Inertial Confinement Fusion Program)

Authors
  1. J. H. Campbell
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Additional information

J. H. Campbell received a BS in Chemistry at Rochester Institute of Technology and a PhD in Physical Chemistry at the University of Illinois.

Work performed under the auspices of the U. S. Department of Energy by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory under contract number W-7405-ENG-48.

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Campbell, J.H. Development of Direct Drive, High-Gain Capsules for Inertial Fusion: A Materials Challenge. MRS Bulletin 11, 26–29 (1986). https://doi.org/10.1557/S0883769400054464

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