Journals of Accelerator Conferences Website (JACoW)
JACoW
is a publisher in Geneva, Switzerland that publishes the
proceedings of accelerator conferences held around the world
by an international collaboration of editors.
| URL | https://doi.org/10.18429/JACoW-ICALEPCS2025-TUCR002 |
|---|---|
| Title | Control system upgrades at the National Ignition Facility for higher laser energy and higher fusion yields |
| Authors |
|
| Abstract | Following the landmark achievement of fusion ignition in December 2022, the National Ignition Facility (NIF) has now repeated ignition multiple times, reaching record yields and fusion gains. To further advance fusion research into new experimental regimes, NIF is currently planning the Enhanced Yield Capability (EYC) upgrade, raising laser energy to 2.6 MJ by fully utilizing the laser amplification potential of its design. Simulations predict EYC yields exceeding 30 MJ, enabling transformative opportunities for Inertial Confinement Fusion (ICF) and High-Energy-Density (HED) sciences. This paper focuses on the dual challenge of implementing EYC while sustaining aging control systems nearly two decades old. While the data-driven NIF control system architecture requires only modest modifications for higher laser energy, these still demand coordination with the sustainment of the pulse shaping, amplification, and optical damage mitigation subsystems. Upgrades must remain compatible with legacy interfaces and hybrid legacy-modern components while delivering enhanced performance for higher energies. We detail the technical approaches and operational strategies for integrating capability enhancement and component renewal in a facility with ongoing experiments, highlighting how well-planned design synergies minimize conflicts between major upgrades and sustainment efforts. |
| Paper | download: TUCR002.pdf |
| Cite | BibTeX, LaTeX, Text/Word, RIS, EndNote |
| Conference | 20th Int. Conf. Accel. Large Exp. Phys. Control Syst. (ICALEPCS'25) |
| Series | |
| Location | Chicago, IL, USA |
| Date | 20-26 Sep 2025 |
| Publisher | JACoW Publishing, Geneva, Switzerland |
| Editorial Board | Kent Wootton (ANL), Jeffery Biss (FNAL), Gustavo Bruno (ANL), Jeff Kirchman (ANL), Kelly Jaje (ANL), Denise Skiadopoulos (ANL), SuYin Grass Wang (ANL) |
| Online ISBN | 978-3-95450-255-4 |
| Online ISSN | 2226-0358 |
| Received | 07 September 2025 |
| Revised | 22 September 2025 |
| Accepted | 28 October 2025 |
| Issued | 25 November 2025 |
| DOI | 10.18429/JACoW-ICALEPCS2025-TUCR002 |
| Pages | 329-335 |
| Copyright | Published by JACoW Publishing under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. Any further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s), the published article's title, publisher, and DOI. |