Helios: A 15 TW carbon dioxide laser-fusion facility

Abstract

Helios is an eight-beam carbon dioxide laser and target facility for the study of laser-fusion processes. The design of file laser is based on the principle of the electron-beam controlled high-pressure electrical discharge. The eight beams deliver a total of 9 kJ to targets in subnanosecond pulses and the peak intensity at focus exceeds 10 <sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">16</sup> W/cm <sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</sup> /beam. The laser can be fired at 5 min intervals but the system shot rate is restricted to 2/h because of target insertion, alignment, and preparation of diagnostic systems.