LLNL, Livermore, USA
The National Ignition Facility (NIF) is the world’s largest and most energetic 192-laser-beam system which conducts experiments in High Energy Density (HED) physics and Inertial Confinement Fusion (ICF). In December 2022, the NIF achieved a scientific breakthrough when, for the first time ever, the ICF ignition occurred under laboratory conditions. The key to the NIF’s experimental prowess and versatility is not only its power but also its precise control. The NIF controls and data systems place the experimenter in full command of the laser and target diagnostics capabilities. The recently upgraded Master Oscillator Room (MOR) system precisely shapes NIF laser pulses in the temporal, spatial, and spectral domains. Apart from the primary 10-meter spherical target chamber, the NIF laser beams can now be directed towards two more experimental stations to study laser interactions with optics and large full beam targets. The NIF’s wide range of target diagnostics continues to expand with new tools to probe and capture complex plasma phenomena using x-rays, gamma-rays, neutrons, and accelerated protons. While the increasing neutron yields mark the NIF’s steady progress towards exciting experimental regimes, they also require new mitigations for radiation damage in control and diagnostic electronics. With many NIF components approaching 20 years of age, a Sustainment Plan is now underway to modernize NIF, including controls and information systems, to assure NIF operations through 2040.
LLNL Release Number: LLNL-ABS-847574
