Effects of Radial Thermal Conduction and Radiation Transport During Fuel Pellet Implosion in Heavy-Ion Inertial Fusion

Abstract

We investigated the effects of radial thermal conduction and radiation transport from a fuel pre-heating for during the implosion process. We proposed a target structure using a Pb pusher to prevent the pre-heating phenomenon. We compared the electron heat and radiation fluxes, optical thickness, radiation temperature of the fuel, and fuel compression ratio for the Al and Pb pushers. For the Pb pusher, the compression ratio of the fuel increased when pre-heating was prevented. The results indicated that a pusher with a high-Z and dense material could minimize pre-heating and achieve a high fuel compression ratio. This is because such a material can maintain higher opacity during the implosion process.