Measurements of ρR asymmetries at burn time in inertial-confinement-fusion capsules

Abstract

Recent spectroscopic analysis of charged particles generated by fusion reactions in direct-drive implosion experiments at the OMEGA laser facility [T. R. Boehly et al., Opt. Commun. 133, 495 (1997)] show the presence of low-mode-number asymmetries in compressed-capsule areal density (ρR) at the time of fusion burn. Experiments involved the acquisition and analysis of spectra of primary (14.7 MeV) protons, from capsules filled with deuterium and helium-3, and secondary (12.6–17.5 MeV) protons, from cryogenic deuterium capsules. The difference between the birth energy and measured energy of these protons provides a measure of the amount of material they passed through on their way out of a capsule, so measurements taken at different angles relative to a target provide information about angular variations in capsule areal density at burn time. Those variations have low-mode-number amplitudes as large as ±50% about the mean (which is typically ∼65 mg/cm2); high-mode-number structure can lead to individual pathlengths through the shell that reach several times the mean. It was found that the observed ρR asymmetries are often similar for contiguous implosions, but change when the laser beam energy balance is significantly changed, indicating a direct connection between drive symmetry and implosion symmetry.