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Diagnostics available for use on OMEGA
OMEGA Laser System
The OMEGA Laser System (also called OMEGA or OMEGA-60) is a state-of-the-art facility dedicated to inertial confinement fusion (ICF) research and high-energy-density physics experiments. Its unique features and capabilities make OMEGA an invaluable tool for the scientific community and continues to advance our understanding of fusion science, astrophysics, and high-energy-density physics.
As a user facility, it supports collaborative research efforts from national laboratories, academic institutions, and international partners, driving progress toward practical fusion energy and enhancing our knowledge of the universe.
Features
- Symmetric drive energy from 60 laser beams
- Infrared laser with Nd:glass laser medium (1053 nm)
- Each beam is frequency-tripled for high absorption (351 nm)
- A 3.3-m-diam target chamber
- Precise beam synchronization and alignment
- Flexible pulse shaping with custom shapes ranging from 100 ps to 4 ns in duration
- Advanced diagnostics suite
- Versatile target-positioning system
- Cryogenic target handling capabilities
The Nation’s ICF Workhorse
The OMEGA Laser System is the ICF workhorse at LLE and forms the backbone of fusion research conducted within the national ICF community.
The OMEGA EP (Extended Performance) Laser System adds advanced capabilities like short-pulse laser beams to study advanced ignition concepts and supports experiments that require extremely high power or fast timing.
Capabilities
- Laser Performance: The OMEGA Laser System delivers up to 30 kJ of frequency-tripled ultraviolet (351-nm) energy on target using 60 laser beams. Each beam can produce precisely shaped pulses with durations from 0.1 to 4 ns for a total on-target power exceeding 30 TW.
- Uniform Illumination: The system provides highly uniform, symmetrically driven irradiation using distributed phase plates, smoothing by spectral dispersion, and polarization smoothing—enabling precision target compression for inertial confinement fusion.
- Pulse Shaping and Timing: OMEGA supports programmable ultraviolet pulse shapes with sub-100-ps resolution and pulse-to-pulse reproducibility. The timing of each beam is synchronized to within 10 ps to ensure accurate temporal overlap. Each beam can also be offset.
- Targeting and Alignment: Advanced imaging, alignment, and beam-pointing systems achieve target positioning accuracy within 10 μm. Targets can be placed in specialized spherical cryogenic or planar cryogenic target mounts for a wide range of experimental configurations.
- Comprehensive Diagnostics Inventory: A broad range of fixed and interchangeable diagnostics is maintained by the facility and available to the user community.
OMEGA’s high energy, precision control, and diagnostic versatility make it one of the world’s premier facilities for exploring inertial confinement fusion, high-energy-density physics, and laser–matter interactions.