LLE Research Team Wins 2024 John Dawson Award for Excellence in Plasma Physics Research

The American Physics Society (APS) just awarded a research team from the Laboratory for Laser Energetics (LLE) with the John Dawson Award for Excellence in Plasma Physics Research. This prestigious honor recognizes outstanding achievements in plasma physics research, including pioneering experiments or novel theoretical developments that stand out for their innovation and impact on the field.

The Research and the Team

The research team received the award for pioneering the development of statistical modeling to predict, design, and analyze implosion experiments on the 30-kJ OMEGA laser, achieving hot-spot energy gains above unity and record Lawson triple products for direct-drive laser fusion. The award-winning research includes contributions from scientists and engineers in diagnostics and code development, target fabrication and cryogenic layering, and laser facility operation.

The research team and their roles:

Riccardo Betti, Aarne Lees, and Varchas Gopalaswamy developed the statistical models used to design, analyze and optimize implosions. They designed the record triple product target that scales to a burning plasma on NIF.
Mike Campbell, University of California, San Diego and former director of LLE was a key participant in developing the laser-direct-drive fusion strategy.
Duc M. Cao developed the 2D version of the statistical model, used to link inferred dependencies to real degradations.
Chad J. Forrest developed the areal-density diagnostic used in the triple product.
James P. Knauer led the team of experimental scientists in the implosion campaign.
Sean P. Regan led the OMEGA laser and diagnostic improvements to achieve record performance.
Rahul C. Shah developed the x-ray penumbral imaging diagnostic use to infer the hot-spot energy.
Cliff A. Thomas validated the hydrodynamic scaling used to extrapolate the OMEGA results.
Connor Alexander Williams from Sandia National Laboratories designed and analyzed the implosions, leading to OMEGA record fusion yield.

Accelerating Inertial Confinement Fusion

The research validates innovative design and analysis approaches, paving the way for more-efficient exploration of target designs and improved understanding of the underlying physics. These advancements are expected to guide future implosion experiments and accelerate progress in high-yield inertial confinement fusion and inertial fusion energy. Recipients of the award receive a $5,000 prize, a certificate, and an allowance for registration and travel to the APS Division of Plasma Physics Annual Meeting.

About LLE
The Laboratory for Laser Energetics is a world-leading research facility dedicated to advancing laser science and technology. Located at the University of Rochester, LLE conducts research in a variety of areas, including laser fusion, high-energy-density physics, and materials science.