A conceptual design of a hydrogen-fluoride chemical laser driver for inertial confinement fusion

This paper summarizes the results of a study which assessed the potential of the hydrogen-fluoride (HF) chemical laser as a laser-fusion driver. The evaluation was made by designing a laser system in sufficient detail that potential problems could be identified. A summary of the laser design including amplifier parameters, electron-beam accelerator specifications, gas-handling system, pulse shape considerations, and net efficiency calculations is presented here. The final laser design consists of 20, 100 kJ final amplifiers, which combine to yield a 2 MJ laser output. The energy is delivered in a shaped pulse in which one-half of the energy is delivered in the last 3 ns. The pulse rate is 4 pulses per second and the net efficiency is approximately 3 percent. Consideration is also given to the consequences of varying certain laser parameters. The general conclusion obtained from this study is that the HF laser is an attractive laser candidate for laser-fusion applications.