Progress in Inertial Fusion Energy Research: Two Years After Ignition
The repeated success of the National Ignition Facility (NIF) to demonstrate ignition and scientific energy gain in the last 1.5 years has reinvigorated interest in making inertial fusion energy (IFE) fusion power plants a reality. In 2023, the Department of Energy revitalized the public IFE program with its launch of the IFE-STAR (Science and Technology Accelerated Research) Hubs, and several new IFE companies are now pursuing diverse inertial fusion approaches. The commercialization of IFE power plants will require overcoming many scientific, engineering, and economic viability hurdles. We are interested in contributions that broadly cover the themes of system-level concepts, target design, advanced driver systems, and target manufacturing capabilities.
Topics covered include, but are not limited to:
- Target design at high gain
- Uses of AI/ML in design or operation of IFE plants
- Driver system advances
- Target manufacturing capabilities
- Laser-plasma interactions
Guest Editors
Michael Kruse, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Carmen Menoni, Colorado State University
Dustin Froula, Laboratory for Laser Energetics
Siegfried Glenzer, SLAC