An overview of Aurora: a multi-kilojoule KrF laser system for inertial confinement fusion

Abstract

Aurora is a short-pulse high-power krypton-fluoride laser system that serves as an end-to-end technology demonstration prototype for large-scale ultraviolet laser systems of interest for short wavelength inertial confinement fusion (ICF) studies. The system is designed to employ optical angular multiplexing and serial amplification by electron-beam-driven KrF laser amplifiers to deliver 248 nm, 5-ns duration multi-kilojoule laser pulses to ICF targets using a beam train of approximately 1 km in length.In this paper, we will discuss the goals for the system and summarize the design features of the major system components: front-end lasers, amplifier train, optical train, and the alignment and controls systems.