dorsal/arxiv
View SchemaThe National Ignition Facility: Status and Plans for Laser Fusion and High-Energy-Density Experimental Studies
| Authors | E. I. Moses |
|---|---|
| Categories | |
| ArXiv ID | physics/0111063 |
| URL | https://arxiv.org/abs/physics/0111063 |
| Journal | eConf C011127 (2001) TUAI001 |
Abstract
The National Ignition Facility (NIF) currently under construction at the University of California Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) is a 192-beam, 1.8-megajoule, 500-terawatt, 351-nm laser for inertial confinement fusion (ICF) and high-energy-density experimental studies. NIF is being built by the Department of Energy and the National Nuclear Security Agency (NNSA) to provide an experimental test bed for the U.S. Stockpile Stewardship Program to ensure the country's nuclear deterrent without underground nuclear testing. The experimental program will encompass a wide range of physical phenomena from fusion energy production to materials science. Of the roughly 700 shots available per year, about 10% will be dedicated to basic science research. Laser hardware is modularized into line replaceable units (LRUs) such as deformable mirrors, amplifiers, and multi-function sensor packages that are operated by a distributed computer control system of nearly 60,000 control points. The supervisory control room presents facility-wide status and orchestrates experiments using operating parameters predicted by physics models. A network of several hundred front-end processors (FEPs) implements device control. The object-oriented software system is implemented in the Ada and Java languages and emphasizes CORBA distribution of reusable software objects. NIF is currently scheduled to provide first light in 2004 and will be completed in 2008.
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"abstract": "The National Ignition Facility (NIF) currently under construction at the\nUniversity of California Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) is a\n192-beam, 1.8-megajoule, 500-terawatt, 351-nm laser for inertial confinement\nfusion (ICF) and high-energy-density experimental studies. NIF is being built\nby the Department of Energy and the National Nuclear Security Agency (NNSA) to\nprovide an experimental test bed for the U.S. Stockpile Stewardship Program to\nensure the country\u0027s nuclear deterrent without underground nuclear testing. The\nexperimental program will encompass a wide range of physical phenomena from\nfusion energy production to materials science. Of the roughly 700 shots\navailable per year, about 10% will be dedicated to basic science research.\nLaser hardware is modularized into line replaceable units (LRUs) such as\ndeformable mirrors, amplifiers, and multi-function sensor packages that are\noperated by a distributed computer control system of nearly 60,000 control\npoints. The supervisory control room presents facility-wide status and\norchestrates experiments using operating parameters predicted by physics\nmodels. A network of several hundred front-end processors (FEPs) implements\ndevice control. The object-oriented software system is implemented in the Ada\nand Java languages and emphasizes CORBA distribution of reusable software\nobjects. NIF is currently scheduled to provide first light in 2004 and will be\ncompleted in 2008.",
"arxiv_id": "physics/0111063",
"authors": [
"E. I. Moses"
],
"categories": [
"physics.plasm-ph",
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"journal_ref": "eConf C011127 (2001) TUAI001",
"title": "The National Ignition Facility: Status and Plans for Laser Fusion and High-Energy-Density Experimental Studies",
"url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/physics/0111063"
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