T. R. Dittrich

Fuel gain exceeding unity in an inertially confined fusion implosion

Ignition is needed to make fusion energy a viable alternative energy source, but has yet to be achieved. A key step on the way to ignition is to have the energy generated through fusion reactions in an inertially confined fusion plasma exceed the amount of energy deposited into the deuterium–tritium fusion fuel and hotspot during the implosion process, resulting in a fuel gain greater than unity. Here we report the achievement of fusion fuel gains exceeding unity on the US National Ignition Facility using a ‘high-foot’ implosion method, which is a manipulation of the laser pulse shape in a way that reduces instability in the implosion. These experiments show an order-of-magnitude improvement in yield performance over past deuterium–tritium implosion experiments. We also see a significant contribution to the yield from α-particle self-heating and evidence for the ‘bootstrapping’ required to accelerate the deuterium–tritium fusion burn to eventually ‘run away’ and ignite.

Three-dimensional HYDRA simulations of National Ignition Facility targets*

The performance of a targets designed for the National Ignition Facility (NIF) are simulated in three dimensions using the HYDRA multiphysics radiation hydrodynamics code. [M. Marinak et al., Phys. Plasmas 5, 1125 (1998)] In simulations of a cylindrical NIF hohlraum that include an imploding capsule, all relevant hohlraum features and the detailed laser illumination pattern, the motion of the wall material inside the hohlraum shows a high degree of axisymmetry. Laser light is able to propagate through the entrance hole for the required duration of the pulse. Gross hohlraum energetics mirror the results from an axisymmetric simulation. A NIF capsule simulation resolved the full spectrum of the most dangerous modes that grow from surface roughness. Hydrodynamic instabilities evolve into the weakly nonlinear regime. There is no evidence of anomalous low mode growth driven by nonlinear mode coupling.

Review of indirect-drive ignition design options for the National Ignition Facility

Several inertial confinement fusion (ICF) capsule designs have been proposed as possible candidates for achieving ignition by indirect drive on the National Ignition Facility (NIF) laser [Paisner et al., Laser Focus World 30, 75 (1994)]. This article reviews these designs, their predicted performance using one-, two-, and three-dimensional numerical simulations, and their fabricability. Recent design work at a peak x-ray drive temperature of 250 eV with either 900 or 1300 kJ total laser energy confirms earlier capsule performance estimates [Lindl, Phys. Plasmas 2, 3933 (1995)] that were based on hydrodynamic stability arguments. These simulations at 250 eV and others at the nominal 300 eV drive show that capsules having either copper doped beryllium (Be+Cu) or polyimide (C22H10N2O4) ablators have favorable implosion stability and material fabrication properties. Prototypes of capsules using these ablator materials are being constructed using several techniques: brazing together machined hemishells (Be+Cu)...

The high-foot implosion campaign on the National Ignition Facilitya)

The “High-Foot” platform manipulates the laser pulse-shape coming from the National Ignition Facility laser to create an indirect drive 3-shock implosion that is significantly more robust against instability growth involving the ablator and also modestly reduces implosion convergence ratio. This strategy gives up on theoretical high-gain in an inertial confinement fusion implosion in order to obtain better control of the implosion and bring experimental performance in-line with calculated performance, yet keeps the absolute capsule performance relatively high. In this paper, we will cover the various experimental and theoretical motivations for the high-foot drive as well as cover the experimental results that have come out of the high-foot experimental campaign. At the time of this writing, the high-foot implosion has demonstrated record total deuterium-tritium yields (9.3×1015) with low levels of inferred mix, excellent agreement with implosion simulations, fuel energy gains exceeding unity, and evidenc...

A comparison of three-dimensional multimode hydrodynamic instability growth on various National Ignition Facility capsule designs with HYDRA simulations

Three similar cryogenic ignition capsule designs for the National Ignition Facility [J. Lindl, Phys. Plasmas 2, 3933 (1995)] are analyzed to determine surface roughness specifications required to mitigate the growth of hydrodynamic instabilities. These capsule utilize brominated plastic, polyimid and copper-doped beryllium ablator materials respectively. Direct three-dimensional numerical simulations with the HYDRA radiation hydrodynamic code [M. M. Marinak et al., Phys. Plasmas 3, 2070 (1996)] examine the growth of multimode perturbations seeded by roughness on the outer ablator and inner ice surfaces. The simulations, which showed weakly nonlinear behavior for optimized surfaces, were carried through ignition and burn. A three-dimensional multimode perturbation achieves somewhat larger amplitudes in the nonlinear regime than a corresponding two-dimensional simulation of the same rms amplitude. The beryllium and polyimid capsules exhibit enhanced tolerance of roughness on both the ice and ablator surfaces.

Update on specifications for NIF ignition targets and their rollup into an error budget

Abstract Targets intended to produce ignition on NIF are being simulated and the simulations are used to set specifications for target fabrication. Recent design work has focused on designs that assume only 1.0 MJ of laser energy instead of the previous 1.6 MJ. To perform with less laser energy, the hohlraum has been redesigned to be more efficient than previously, and the capsules are slightly smaller. The main-line hohlraum design now has a SiO2 foam fill, a wall of U-Dy-Au, and shields mounted between the capsule and the laser entrance holes. Two capsule designs are being considered. One has a layered Cu-doped Be ablator, and the other layered Ge-doped CH. Both can perform acceptably with recently demonstrated ice layer quality, and with recently demonstrated outer surface roughness. Smoothness of the internal interfaces may be an issue for the Be(Cu) design, and it may be necessary either to polish partially coated shells or to improve process control so that the internal layers are smoother. Complete tables of specifications are being prepared for both targets, to be completed this fiscal year. All the specifications are being rolled together into an error budget indicating adequate margin for ignition with the new designs.

Reduced scale National Ignition Facility capsule design

In this article we describe the design and simulated performance characteristics of an indirectly-driven inertial confinement fusion capsule which utilizes only 900 kJ of laser energy and 250 TW of laser power from the National Ignition Facility (NIF) [Paisner et al., Laser Focus World 30, 75 (1994)]. This intentional reduction in laser performance from the nominal NIF specifications of 1.8 MJ and 500 TW results in lowering the hohlraum x-ray drive temperature from 300 eV to 250 eV. These energy and radiation temperature reductions are believed to define a “lower bound” on the successful implosion of an ignition capsule. This reduced scale capsule has a beryllium ablator containing a radially varying copper dopant, and a cryogenic solid deuterium–tritium fuel layer surrounding a cavity filled with equilibrium vapor pressure gaseous deuterium and tritium. Two-dimensional simulations predict ignition and propagated burn from this capsule when either Rayleigh–Taylor instability or time-dependent drive asymme...

NIF capsule design update

We describe several ignition capsule designs, for use in the National Ignition Facility. We will compare these designs for ablator efficiency, ignition margin, implosion and stability performance. This study includes capsule designs driven by x-ray drive profiles with both 300 eV and 250 eV peak temperatures. All of the 300 eV designs are tuned to implode the DT fuel in a nearly identical manner. Capsule designs consist of an ablator material (CH with Br dopant; Be with Cu dopant; and B{sub 4}C) encasing a layer of solid DT. The dopants alter material opacities sufficiently to (1) shield the DT fuel from preheat effects; and (2) develop an ablation front density profile favorable to implosion stability. B{sub 4}C has sufficient opacity at 300 eV that a dopant is not necessary. Issues relating to material properties and fabrication will be described.

The effects of fill tubes on the hydrodynamics of ignition targets and prospects for ignition

The notion of using a narrow bore fill tube to charge an ignition capsule in situ with deuterium-tritium (DT) fuel is very attractive because it eliminates the need for cryogenic transport of the target from the filling station to the target chamber, and in principle is one way of allowing any material to be considered as an ablator. We are using the radiation hydrocode HYDRA [M. M. Marinak et al., Phys. Plasmas 8, 2275 (2001)] in two dimensions to study the effect of fill tubes on graded copper-doped Be ignition capsule implosions. The capsule is ∼1.1-mm radius and driven at ∼300eV. Fill tubes are made of glass and range in diameter from 10–20μm. These are inserted between 5 and 40μm into the ablator surface, and a glue layer around the capsule ∼2-μm thick is included. The calculations are unusually demanding in that the flow is highly nonlinear from the outset, and very high angular resolution is necessary to capture the initial evolution of the tube, which is complex. Despite this complexity, the net r...

Update on NIF indirect drive ignition target fabrication specifications

Abstract Indirect drive ignition target simulations are described as they are used to determine target fabrication specifications. Simulations are being used to explore options for making the targets more robust, and to develop more detailed understanding of the performance of a few point designs. The current array of targets is described. A new target is described with radially dependent Cu dopant in Be. This target has significantly looser specifications for high-mode perturbations than previous targets. Current estimates of size limitations for fill tubes, holes, and isolated defect are discussed. Recent 3D simulations are described.