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Title: Fuel-shell interface instability growth effects on the performance of room temperature direct-drive implosions

Journal Article · · Physics of Plasmas
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5104338· OSTI ID:1567842

Performance degradation in direct-drive inertial confinement fusion implosions is caused by several effects, one of which is Rayleigh-Taylor (RT) instability growth during the deceleration phase. In room-temperature plastic target implosions, deceleration-phase RT growth is enhanced by the density discontinuity and finite Atwood number at the fuel-shell interface. In this paper, the Atwood number of the interface is systematically varied by altering the ratio of deuterium to tritium (D:T) within the DT gas fill. It is shown that the stability of the interface is best characterized by the effective Atwood number, which is primarily determined by radiation heating of the shell and not by the composition of the fuel. Both simulation and experimental data show that yield performance scales with the fraction of D and T present in the fuel and that the observed inferred ion temperature asymmetry $$(ΔT_i = T_i^{max} - T_i^{min})$$, which indicates the presence of long-wavelength modes, has a small sensitivity to the different D:T ratios.

Research Organization:
Univ. of Rochester, NY (United States). Lab. for Laser Energetics
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)
Grant/Contract Number:
NA0001944
OSTI ID:
1567842
Report Number(s):
2018-331, 2479, 1519; 2018-331, 2479, 1519; TRN: US2100262
Journal Information:
Physics of Plasmas, Vol. 26, Issue 8; ISSN 1070-664X
Publisher:
American Institute of Physics (AIP)Copyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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Figures / Tables (18)


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