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Insulator Materials in High Power Lasers for Inertial Fusion: Present and Future*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 February 2011

William F. Krupke
William F. Krupke*
Affiliation:
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, University of California, P. O. Box 5508, Livermore, California 94550
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Abstract

Dielectric insulator materials have played a critical role in the development of high peak power solid state lasers for use in inertial confinement fusion research: as laser gain media; as transparent substrates for lenses, mirrors, and polarizers; and as active optical materials in nonlinear harmonic generators and electro-optical devices. Materials have been developed which have exceptionally high resistance to damage in the presence of intense optical beams (> GW/cm2) and which possess other properties which optimize their functions in the laser systems. Fusion lasers built to date have been designed for “single shot” operation, and the dielectric insulator materials developed for use in them have had to function under only extremely low average power loading. As we look to the future, fusion laser systems will be required to operate repetitively (few Hz) and deliver high average power output (> MW) at an efficiency greater than 10 percent. Insulator materials for use in these systems must be selected and developed on the basis of their combined mechanical, thermal, and optical properties. In this presentation, I will summarize the important characteristics of currently used insulator materials, identify figures of merit for materials needed in future systems, and outline a methodology for identifying and evaluating new materials meeting the stringent performance requirements of future fusion laser systems.

Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 24: Symposium B – Defect Properties and Processing of High-Technology Nonmetallic Materials , 1983 , 401
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 1984

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Footnotes

*

Work performed under the auspices of the U. S. Department of Energy, Office of Basic Energy Research, Materials Sciences Division, by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory under Contract W–7405–Eng–48.

References

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