As Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory moves forward with the design of the National Ignition Facility (NIF) in the Inertial Confinement Fusion (ICF) program, issues relating to the detection and measurement of laser-induced damage on large optics must be addressed. Currently, microscopy is used to evaluate surface quality and measure damage thresholds on small witness samples. In order to evaluate large areas, an automated system was constructed which can scan optics with dimensions as large as 1 meter and weighing as much as 400 pounds. The use of microscopy as the main test diagnostic has been replaced with an optical scatter detection system. Now large areas can be rastered, and maps can be generated, reflecting inherent and laser-induced scatter in multilayer optical coatings and bulk materials. The integrated scattered light from a test piece is measured in transmission using a HeNe laser as the probe source. When the probe beam is overlapped on a pulsed, high power, ND:YAG laser beam, damage related scatter may be measured. This technique has been used for: (1) mapping of inherent scatter in an optic, (2) on-the-fly damage detection during a high fluence raster scan of an optic, and (3) single site damage evaluation for the …

The Department of Energy must demonstrate the effectiveness of the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) as a permanent repository for the disposal of transuranic (TRU) waste. Performance assessments of the WIPP require that estimates of the transportability and outcome of the radionuclides (actinides) be determined from disposal rooms that may become either partially or completely filled with brine. Federal regulations limit the amount of radioactivity that may be unintentionally released to the accessible environment by any mechanism during the post closure phase up to 10,000 years. Thermodynamic models have been developed to predict the concentrations of actinides in the WIPP disposal rooms under various situations and chemical conditions. These models are based on empirical and theoretical projections of the chemistry that might be present in and around the disposal room zone for both near and long-term periods. The actinides that are known to be present in the TRU wastes (and are included in the model) are Th, U, Np, Pu, and Am. Knowledge of the chemistry that might occur in the disposal rooms when the waste comes in contact with brine is important in understanding the range of oxidation states that might be present under different conditions. There is a …

Researchers at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and EG&G Energy Measurements are developing a new solid-state power system for two proposed accelerators. One of the accelerators is a circular arrangement of induction cells called a recirculator. It is designed to accelerate heavy ions for an inertial fusion study that proposes to substitute heavy-ion beams for laser beams as the driver for fusion targets. The other accelerator is a linear induction accelerator for electron beams called the Advanced Radiographic Machine (ARM). Both accelerators require their induction cells to be pulsed at a very high repetition frequency (prf) for a short burst containing 5 to 15 pulses. The recirculator has a pulse schedule that varies in pulse width from 1 {mu}s to 400 ns and in prf from 50 to 150 kHz. The ARM accelerator has a pulse schedule that varies in pulse width from 1 {mu}s to 200 ns and in prf from 150 kHz to 1 MHz. The need for complex pulse agility in these accelerators led the authors to examine solid-state switching components that have an on/off capability. The intrinsic speed of solid-state switching satisfies the high prf requirements, while the on/off switching action of some semiconductor devices enables …