Hostname: page-component-8448b6f56d-sxzjt Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-20T07:31:57.699Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Beam smoothing and temporal effects:Optimized preparation of laser beams for direct-drive inertial confinement fusion1

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 March 2009

B.W. Boreham ,
H. Hora ,
M. Aydin ,
S. Eliezer ,
M.P. Goldsworthy ,
Gu Min ,
A.K. Gahatak ,
P. Lalousis ,
R.J. Stening  and
H. Szichman
...Show all authors
B.W. Boreham
Affiliation:
Department of Applied Physics, Central Queensland University, Rockhampton 4702, Australia
H. Hora
Affiliation:
Department of Theoretical Physics, University of New South Wales, Sydney 2053, Australia
M. Aydin
Affiliation:
Department of Theoretical Physics, University of New South Wales, Sydney 2053, Australia
S. Eliezer
Affiliation:
Department of Theoretical Physics, University of New South Wales, Sydney 2053, Australia
M.P. Goldsworthy
Affiliation:
Department of Theoretical Physics, University of New South Wales, Sydney 2053, Australia
Gu Min
Affiliation:
Department of Theoretical Physics, University of New South Wales, Sydney 2053, Australia
A.K. Gahatak
Affiliation:
Department of Theoretical Physics, University of New South Wales, Sydney 2053, Australia
P. Lalousis
Affiliation:
Department of Theoretical Physics, University of New South Wales, Sydney 2053, Australia
R.J. Stening
Affiliation:
Department of Theoretical Physics, University of New South Wales, Sydney 2053, Australia
H. Szichman
Affiliation:
Department of Theoretical Physics, University of New South Wales, Sydney 2053, Australia
H. Hora
Affiliation:
Department of Theoretical Physics, University of New South Wales, Sydney 2053, Australia
B. Luther-Davies
Affiliation:
Laser Physics Centre, Australian National University, Canberra 2600, Australia
K.G.H. Baldwin
Affiliation:
Laser Physics Centre, Australian National University, Canberra 2600, Australia
R.A.M. Maddever
Affiliation:
Laser Physics Centre, Australian National University, Canberra 2600, Australia
A.V. Rode
Affiliation:
Laser Physics Centre, Australian National University, Canberra 2600, Australia
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Direct-drive laser fusion received a number of setbacks from the experimental observation in the 1960s and 1970s of very complex interactions in laser plasma experiments caused by a number of nonlinear and anomalous phenomena. Although smoothing methods were introduced intuitively or empirically–succeeding in reducing these difficulties–it was not until a few years ago that the 20-ps stochastic pulsation mechanism was discovered. We assume here that this 20-ps stochastic pulsation may be the major obstacle to achieving direct-drive fusion, even though it is now generally assumed that the major challenge to the achievement of direct-drive fusion is the Rayleigh-Taylor instability. While we do not discount the importance of the Rayleigh-Taylor mechanisms, we concentrate here on the analysis of the pulsation process. A method of analysis was developed, using time-dependent real-time computations employing a genuine two-fluid model, which includes the interior electric fields and the very large amplitude longitudinal plasma oscillations that are driven by the laser field. These mechanisms, which were first suggested in 1974, reveal themselves now as self-generated von-Laue gratings, preventing the propagation of laser radiation through the outermost plasma corona and preventing energy deposition by temporal interruption caused by thermal relaxation and the subsequent reestablishment of these gratings, and so on. The abolition of this pulsation by broad-band laser irradiation or other smoothing methods is now well understood. A synopsis of these developments is presented here, consistent with Rubbia's proposition of using the MJ drivers for laser fusion, the technology for which is now available.

Type
Regular Papers
Information
Laser and Particle Beams , Volume 15 , Issue 2 , June 1997 , pp. 277 - 295
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1997

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Aleksandrova, I.V. et al. 1985 Laser Part. Beams 3, 197.Google Scholar
Aydin, M. et al. 1992 Laser Part. Beams 11, 177.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Azechi, H. et al. 1991 Laser Part. Beams 9, 193.Google Scholar
Baldwin, K.G.H. & Boreham, B.W. 1981 J. Appl. Phys. 52, 2627.Google Scholar
Boreham, B.W. & Hora, H. 1979 Phys. Rev. Lett. 42, 776.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Boreham, B.W. & Luther-Davies, B. 1979 J. Appl. Phys. 50, 2533.Google Scholar
Büchl, K. et al. 1972 Laser Interaction and Related Plasma Phenomena, Schwarz, H. et al. , eds. (Plenum, New York), Vol. 2, p. 503.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chen, F.F. 1974 Laser Interaction and Related Plasma Phenomena, Schwarz, H. et al. , eds. (Plenum, New York), Vol. 3A, p. 153.Google Scholar
Deng, X. 1983 Acta Optica Sinica 2, 97.Google Scholar
Deng, X.. 1986 Appl. Opt. 25, 377.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Deng, X. et al. 1986 Appl. Opt. 25, 377.Google Scholar
Eidmann, K.& Sigel, R. 1974 Laser Interaction and Related Plasma Phenomena, Schwarz, H. et al. , eds. (Plenum, New York), Vol. 3B, p. 667.Google Scholar
Eliezer, S. & Hora, H. 1989 Phys. Rep. 172, 339.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Eliezer, S. & Hora, H. 1993 Nuclear Fusion by Inertial Confinement, Verlade, G. et al. , eds. (CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL), p. 43.Google Scholar
Eliezer, S. & Ludmiski, A. 1983 Laser Part. Beams 1, 251.Google Scholar
Emery, M.H. et al. 1991 Phys. Fluids B 3, 2640.Google Scholar
Engelhardt, A.G. et al. 1970 Phys. Fluids 15, 349.Google Scholar
Guilietti, A. et al. 1989 Laser Interaction with Plasmas, Velarde, G. et al. , eds. (World Scientific, Singapore), p. 208.Google Scholar
Goldsworthy, M.P. et al. 1986 IEEE Trans. Plasma Sci. 14, 823.Google Scholar
Gu, M. & Hora, H. 1989 Chin J. Laser 16, 656.Google Scholar
Gu, M. & Hora, H. 1991 Laser Part. Beams 9, 381.Google Scholar
Gu, M. et al. 1987 Phys. Fluids 30, 1515.Google Scholar
Guskov, S. et al. 1991 ECLIM '91 Warsaw Conference, Paper P-66.Google Scholar
Haseroth, H. & Hora, H. 1997 Laser Part. Beams 15 (accepted for publication).Google Scholar
Hora, H. 1969a Z. Phys. 226, 156.Google Scholar
Hora, H. 1969b Phys. Fluids 12, 182.Google Scholar
Hora, H. 1975 Laser Plasmas and Nuclear Energy (Plenum, New York).Google Scholar
Hora, H. 1985 Phys. Fluids 28, 3706.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hora, H. 1987 Physics of Laser Driven Plasmas (Wiley, New York).Google Scholar
Hora, H. 1991 Plasmas at High Temperature and Density (Springer-Verlag, Heidelberg).Google Scholar
Hora, H. & Aydin, M. 1992 Phys. Rev. A 45, 6123.Google Scholar
Hora, H. & Ghatak, A.K. 1985 Phys. Rev. A 31, 3272.Google Scholar
Hora, H. & Ray, P.S. 1978 Z. Naturforsch 33A, 890.Google Scholar
Hora, H. et al. 1984 Phys. Rev. Lett. 53, 1650.Google Scholar
Hora, H. et al. 1992 Czech. J. Phys. 42, 849.Google Scholar
Hora, H. et al. 1995 Nucl. Fusion Supplement, 15th Int. Conf. Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion Research, Seville 1994 (IAEA, Vienna), paper IAEA-CN/B-P-2.Google Scholar
Jackel, S. et al. 1976 Phys. Rev. Lett. 37, 95.Google Scholar
Kato, Y. et al. 1984 Phys. Rev. Lett. 53, 1057.Google Scholar
Labaune, C. & Baton, 1992 Phys. Fluids B 4, 2221.Google Scholar
Lalousis, P. & Hora, H. 1983 Laser Part. Beams 1, 283.Google Scholar
Lehmberg, R.H. & Obenschain, S.P. 1983 Opt. Comm. 46, 27.Google Scholar
Lubin, M. 1975 ECLIM '74 Garching, Abstracts, p. 34.Google Scholar
Luther-Davies, B. et al. 1987 Phys. Rev. A 35, 4306.Google Scholar
Luther-Davies, B. & Rode, A.V. 1993 Phys. Rev. E 47, 2778.Google Scholar
Maddever, R.A.M. 1988 thesis, “TemporaPand Spectral Characteristics of the Fundamental and Second Harmonic Emission from Laser-produced Plasmas.” Australian National University.Google Scholar
Maddever, R.A.M. et al. 1990 Phys. Rev. A 41, 2154.Google Scholar
Mainfray, G. & Manus, C. 1993 Progress in Optics 32, 313.Google Scholar
Obenschain, S.P. et al. 1986 Phys. Rev. Lett. 56, 2807.Google Scholar
Obenschain, S.P. et al. 1989 Phys. Rev. Lett. 62, 768.Google Scholar
Rode, A.V. et al. 1991 AINSE Plasma Conf. Lucas Heights, Australia.Google Scholar
Rubbia, C. 1993 Nuovo Cimento 106A, 1429.Google Scholar
Shapiro, R. 1970 Rev. Geophys. and Space Phys. 8, 359.Google Scholar
Shearer, J.W. & Eddleman, J.L. 1974 Phys. Fluids 16, 1753.Google Scholar
Shearer, J.W. et al. 1970 Bull. Am. Phys. Soc. 15, 1483.Google Scholar
Sigel, R. et al. 1976 Phys. Rev. Lett. 36, 1369.Google Scholar
Skupsky, S. et al. 1989 J. Appl. Phys. 66, 3456.Google Scholar
Spitzer, L. 1962 Physics of Fully Ionized Gases, 2 ed. (Wiley, New York).Google Scholar
Szichman, H. 1988 Phys. Fluids 31, 1702.Google Scholar
Tan, W. et al. 1986 Laser Part. Beams 4, 223, 231.Google Scholar
Tan, W. et al. 1987 Phys. Fluids 30, 1510.Google Scholar
Tonks, L. & Langmuir, I. 1929 Phys. Rev. 33, 195.Google Scholar
Yamanaka, C. et al. 1974 Phys. Rev. Lett. 32, 1038.Google Scholar
Yamanaka, C. et al. 1986 Laser Interaction and Related Plasma Phenomena, Hora, H. and Miley, G.H., eds. (Plenum, New York), Vol. 7, p. 395.Google Scholar