ICF & High Energy Density (HED) Research Within the NNSA Fusion Power Associates Symposium December 2-3, 2010 Washington, DC Dr. Allan A. Hauer Chief Scientist, Stockpile Stewardship Program National Nuclear Security Administration US Dept. of Energy

2 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates Three major DOE missions rely on excellence in High Energy Density Physics (HED) for success National Security –Stockpile Stewardship Certification with advanced predictive capability validated by sophisticated experiments –Protecting against technological surprise Maintaining preeminence in HED Science Fundamental Science –Stewardship of HED Joint programs with the Office of Science –Cross-cut with materials science mission Advanced measurements on NIF, Z and potential new capabilities Energy –Inertial Fusion Energy Sciences  energy-related HED Potential development of advanced fusion concepts with dual use applications

3 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates After the explosive phase, weapons rapidly evolve into the HED and plasma regimes (UGTs, sub-crits, DARHT, JASPER, etc) HE phase High explosive creates supercritical assembly Primary phase Super-critical assembly Primary energy production Pre-nuclear phase Energy transfer X-rays transfer energy from primary to secondary Secondary phase Secondary produces energy, explosion and radiation Nuclear Phase (UGTs NIF and, Z) Weapons operation proceeds through the conditions of planetary interiors, to stellar interiors Relevant laboratory expts. are performed throughout the HED phase

4 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates High Energy Density Physics is a key discipline underpinning Stockpile Stewardship Extreme conditions in temperature, density, pressure allow investigation of a large span of physical states. These extreme conditions are required to meet national security needs but also enable contributions to a broad span of basics physics including astrophysics, materials in extreme conditions and many other sub-disciplines. Stewardship of HED and plasma science provides essential support for the NNSA mission.

5 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates Extraordinary new HED capabilities are now in place National Ignition Facility (NIF) –Only access to burning plasma conditions –Important mission experiments have already been performed Omega EP –Sophisticated high irradiance capabilities –Important venue for advanced fusion research Z Machine –Key venue for materials science measurements –Outstanding new results at 4 Mbar. Enormous increase in computational power compliments experimental capability

6 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates Static 10 –4 – 10 2 s – – 10 5 s – – 10 9 s –1 nm µm m e–e– Continuum Microscale Atomic Scale Advanced Materials Science has proved to be a fruitful application for ICF facilities Strain Rates Length scales Experimental platforms Gas Gun Pulsed power Lasers DAC Pressure Computational science and experimental science must be integrated from the atomic- to the continuum-level to predict the properties of materials under extreme conditions

7 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates NNSA mission needs have driven the creation of HEDP environments that are ideal to study complex HED plasmas and materials Mass Outflow High Mach Number unstable flows Jets Rayleigh Taylor Instabilities MHD, thermo-electric, and “anomalous” heating Shocks and radiation transport Materials in the Extreme

8 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates NNSA continues to support the advancement of High Energy Density Basic Science ReNew Workshop Chaired by Prof. Bob Rosner has completed its report NIF has completed a successful competitive process for identifying basic science projects to be undertaken in the next few years A new solicitation for HED science proposals will be issued jointly with OFES in Office of Science / NNSA Workshop on the research directions for Science on NIF will be held in spring 11.

9 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates Proposals Selected in the NIF process span and exciting spectrum of scientific questions

10 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates Proposals Selected in the NIF process span and exciting spectrum of scientific questions

11 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates The pursuit of ignition will dominate the agenda at NIF through major series of ignition experiments are planned for –The plan is to transition to development of an “ignition weapons physics platform” –This “platform” development shares many common goals with energy research Robust operation, moderate to high gain The diagnostic suite will be rapidly evolving during this period. –Installation of Neutron imaging began in 2010 –Several beam lines of the ARC backlighting system will be available in –Detailed burn history measurements were begun in 2010 –Diagnostics that may be unique to the energy mission should be under consideration now. The schedule for the first ignition attempts is somewhat behind the projection presented at the ‘09 FPA meeting

12 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates Cryogenically layered (THD) target experiments have begun X-ray image created from frames each taking » 4 sec to capture for » 2 minutes total Temperature: 18K ±0.001K control Target position stability for X-ray imaging : < 2 microns X-ray of THD cryo layer

13 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates The achievement of igniting conditions will open new frontiers in plasma research Plasma temperatures > 20 keV ; compressed densities > 1000 gm / cm 2 ; pressures ~ 1 Tbar The high performance implosions needed for ignition can also be employed in a variety of non-ignition basic science investigations. –Planetary and astro- physics –Materials under extreme conditions Performing detailed measurements under igniting conditions will present a considerable diagnostic challenge.

14 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates The pursuit of ignition will dominate the agenda at NIF through 2012 Detailed diagnostics that operate during an ignition shot remain a major challenge. Excellent progress has been made in ignition diagnostics to this point. A successful ignition shot will mandate a 1-2 week suspension of experimental operations at NIF.

15 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates Ignition experiments must demonstrate repeatable performance to satisfy both weapons and energy applications The ultimate “control levels” required for various tuning operations (such as drive symmetry) must be demonstrated i.e. “in practice what are the most sensitive parameters ?” Can ignition gain levels be controlled through planned variation in laser or target parameters ? Is there a fundamental “floor” to the variability in gain ? Weapons and energy applications of ignition will require much more than passing the threshold of TN performance

16 Fusion Power Associates Los Alamos NIF Neutron imager is tested and calibrated on Omega 2 axis / 2 image system will allow simultaneous primary(14-MeV ) and downscattered (10-12 MeV ) imaging. Future testing of NI will likely involve polar direct drive capsules thus advancing both basic science and diagnostic development

17 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates Nuclear diagnostics are being developed to enable precision measurements of capsule conditions Triton + 9Be ablator (t,α) reactions distinguish different types of mix. t+ 9Be -> α + 8Li + β ( 13 MeV, 840 ms) NIF full Yield - 8Li production No Mix Chunk Mix Atomic Mix 1E12 3E12 1E14 Debris collector & β counter. Ignited DT fuel Mix region t+ 9Be A double reaction is used to diagnose mix: n + t  t* t + shell -> mix β

18 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates Inertial Fusion Energy 2010 Fusion Energy – no carbon dioxide, modest nuclear waste, 50 years of exploration – ignition imminent at NIF NAS to provide recommendations on IFE priorities Timeline and demonstration potentially similar to ITER

19 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates User Facilities and Shared National Resources – an important component of the future of NNSA facilities Strengthening the HED science base is an essential part of the NNSA mission and a responsibility to the nation. 15% of facility time devoted to basic science is a goal. Mission oriented work will still dominate the agenda for the foreseeable future. Uniform policies and procedures will give a clear picture to the international science community and to our sponsors A broader constituency for our facilities is attractive to substantial segments of congress. Thus far, consideration of basic science (beyond the weapons mission) has been in the general realm of HED

20 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates Organizing and planning principles beyond the ignition demonstration Formulation of the national agenda for HED weapons physics is now well established –5 Year Plan has been completed – will be continually updated –This will evolve to one of the key source documents for the PCF Weapons requirements will continue to dominate the agenda at the major NNSA facilities –A close collaboration and cooperation will be formed between NNSA and the DOE Office of Science to formulate the broader scientific agenda (~15% of facility time). NNSA will provide help to the Office of Science in Preparing for the NAS review of IFE. Utilization of the major NNSA facilities will be guided by a uniform national policy

21 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates After robust ignition is demonstrated, advanced fusion concepts will be considered Double shell ignition –Many desirable characteristics Fast ignition –Potentially higher gain Shock ignition Direct Drive –Potentially higher gain –Potentially greater physical access to the burning plasma Operation at 2  –Potentially > 3 MJ available

22 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates ICF and other NNSA Drivers will enable a wide range of “cross cutting” research Materials science under extreme conditions has a wide spectrum of applications –Fusion materials measurements are another link between weapons requirements and IFE Laboratory astrophysics on Lasers (NIF and Omega) and Z is a burgeoning field

23 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates Pulsed power has had considerable success in advanced materials measurements in addition to its work in fusion 22 MJ stored energy 26 MA peak current ns pulse length 300 TW, 3 MJ x-ray source Mbar pressures

24 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates Advanced materials work on lasers, pulsed power and accelerators links with the IFE mission

25 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates NNSA supports HED facilities of varying scale Large facilities – NIF, OMEGA, Z –Most extreme conditions, complex experimental setups, large operations crews, few hands-on opportunities Intermediate Scale – Trident, Jupiter, Zebra, … –Modest operations crew, hands-on opportunities University Scale – Texas Petawatt, OSU high rep. rate, … –Small operations crew, serve as a basic training ground for new students, many hands-on opportunities In many cases, experiments will progress from small to intermediate to large scale facilities Smaller scale work will also continue to play a role in IFE

26 Fusion Power Associates NNSA relies on intermediate scale plasma science facilities for basic science support Intermediate-size plasma facilities provide both direct and indirect mission support, and we are encouraging user access at our intermediate facilities Examples of intermediate size plasma facilities: Jupiter at LLNL (lasers): support of NIC and NIF; mission; users Trident at LANL (laser): support of NIF and NIC; mission; users Texas Petawatt at UTX (laser): discovery-driven research; users Z-Beamlet / Z Petawatt at SNL (laser): diagnostic for ZR; users Nevada Terawatt at UNR: pulsed power

27 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates IFE / interaction points between NNSA and OFES As data on ignition comes in it will be utilized to guide some aspects of IFE planning –NNSA responsibility to make this information readily available as soon as feasible OFES will take the lead in some aspects of “advanced ICF” –Shock ignition –Fast ignition As IFE plans solidify more NNSA facility time for this work may be justified.

28 Fusion Power Associates Conclusions The achievement of ignition will provide a significant catalyst to all of HED and IFE in particular It will also present specific challenges – the specific constraints of reliable ignition production Current collaborative interactions between OFES and NNSA are very promising precursors to even stronger collaborations on national challenges such as energy

29 Fusion Power Associates Backup slides

30 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates Where the Engineering Test Facility might fit in the development path for fusion energy 500 kJ FTF Single 5 Hz FTF beamline engages injected targets Stage I : Develop full size components Laser module (e.g. 17 kJ, 5 Hz KrF beamline) Target fabrication/injection/tracking Chamber, optics technologies Refine target physics Power plant/FTF design Stage II 100 MW Engineering Test Facility (ETF) Demo physics / technologies for a power plant  G: , G: Tritium breeding, power handling Develop/ validate fusion materials Operating: ~2025 Stage III Prototype Power plant(s) Electricity to the grid Transitioned to private industry

31 Fusion Power Associates High energy lasers have been used to extend solid state physics to the 10 Mbar regime Ramp compression shows diamond is stable and strong to 8Mbar Ramp laser intensity to produce shockless compression Edwards, et al. (PRL 04) Smith, et al. (PRL 06) Bradley, et al. (PRL 08) Eggert et al. (SCCM 07) NIF designs use the same technique to study solids to many >30 Mbar Pressure (Mbar) 654 Density (g/cc) Bradley et al New cold-solid-state ramp compressed data Calculated Cold curve Diamond cell data

32 Fusion Power Associates High energy lasers have been used to extend solid state physics to the 10 Mbar regime Ramp compression shows diamond is stable and strong to 8Mbar NIF designs use the same technique to study solids to many >30 Mbar Pressure (Mbar) 654 Density (g/cc) Bradley et al New cold-solid-state ramp compressed data Calculated Cold curve Diamond cell data Diffraction for structure & strength =>Fe is HCP to 5 Mbar EXAFS is being used to measure T & structure in Fe to 3 Mbar 32 Fe data at 3 Mbar  Electron wavenumber (A -1 ) Fe Data at 5 Mbar Eggert et al Hicks et al

33 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates High Energy Density Physics is the Cornerstone of Science at NIF, Omega and Z

34 Fusion Power Associates Fusion Power Associates The role of intermediate scale facilities is a crucial planning issue A consistent picture of the value of intermediate facilities has emerged from the academic community –Value of “hands on” experience in training and education –The need for staging, prototyping and calibration for work at the large facilities. Finding a funding pattern will be a challenge but a preliminary effort will be attempted