Ignition and Beyond: An Update on the Inertial Confinement Fusion Program at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

Richard Town

Lawrence Livermore National Lab

Friday, October 25, 2024

2:00pm

NW17-218 Hybrid

PSFC Seminars

Abstract: On December 5, 2022, at the National Ignition Facility (NIF) the output from a laser indirect drive inertial confinement fusion (ICF) target exceeded the energy delivered to that target meeting the National Academies of Sciences’ (NAS) definition of ignition for the first time in the laboratory. Achieving scientific breakeven advances the long-term goal of delivering a high fusion yield capability to support the National Nuclear Security Administration’s stockpile stewardship program. This feat has since been repeated a further four times including an experiment that achieved target gain greater than two. These results have spurred driver technology development and interest in both extensions of current facility capabilities and a new high yield facility as well as a resurgence of interest in inertial fusion energy. This presentation will describe these recent highlights and plans as we move beyond ignition. 

Bio: Dr. Richard Town is the Associate Program Director for Inertial Confinement Fusion Science at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL). He leads LLNL’s experimental, theoretical, and computational efforts to achieve higher yields on the National Ignition Facility (NIF), with the eventual goal of enabling a future high fusion yield capability. Richard received his Ph.D. in 1990 from Imperial College, London where he continued as a postdoctoral researcher until he joined the University of Rochester’s Laboratory for Laser Energetics in 1995. Richard joined LLNL in 2002 where he initially worked on fast ignition research before concentrating on NIF hot-spot ignition campaigns.