Quick Shot

A team of researchers including LLE’s Relativistic Laser-Plasma Experiments Group Leader, Hans Rinderknecht, and Integrated Modeling Group Scientist, Cliff Thomas, have received Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s 2021 Director’s Science and Technology Award. The award was given for their contributions in creating a “burning plasma,” where the heat from the fusion reactions was greater than all the other power sources in the plasma. The achievement of a burning plasma is a major scientific advance, signaling to the scientific community that exciting progress is being made in ignition efforts on the National Ignition Facility. This result will soon be published in Nature along with companion papers in related journals.