Abstract

In an idealized laser fusion target, there is an advantage to having the thermonuclear fuel in the form of a solid spherical shell with a void in the center of the sphere. Compared to a uniform gaseous fill, the solid layer configuration puts the fuel at much higher initial density, and allows the early stages of the implosion to proceed along a lower adiabat. At the peak of the implosion, this target would therefore have higher density and temperature than the initially gas-filled one. Ultimately this translates into more thermonuclear output at fixed laser input for the target with the fuel in a solid shell.

© 1982 Optical Society of America