Extremely smooth, uniform metal coatings of micrometer thicknesses on microscopic glass spheres (microspheres) are often needed as targets for inertial confinement fusion (ICF) experiments. The first part of this paper reviews those methods used successfully to provide metal coated microspheres for ICF targets, including magnetron sputtering, electro- and electroless plating, and chemical vapor pyrolysis. The second part of this paper discusses some of the critical aspects of magnetron sputter coating of microspheres, including substrate requirements, the sticking of microspheres during coating (preventing a uniform coating), and the difficulties in growing the desired dense, smooth, uniform microstructure on continuously moving spherical substrates.

Most analytical and experimental approaches to the evaluation of fluid-structure interaction (FSI) effects in the General Electric Mark I BWR pressure suppression system treat the torus shell as rigid when the shell in real systems is flexible. This report describes linear three-dimensional finite-element analyses of one torus bay that investigated the qualitative effect of torus wall flexibility on hydrodynamic loads induced by a nominal safety relief valve (SRV) discharge. The results of these analyses support the general conclusion drawn from earlier two-dimensional analyses. The report also discusses finite-element analyses of a 3-D representation of the earlier 2-D plane-strain model of the torus shell.

Initial Tandem Mirror Hybrid Study predicts the ability to produce large amounts of fissile fuel (2 to 7 tonnes per year U233 from a 4000 MW plant) at a cost that adds less than 25% to the cost of power from an LWR.

This report describes a series of extended analyses requested by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission to provide qualified understanding of possible fluid/structure interaction (FSI) effects for SRV teequencher test results. Three input pulses with total impulses varying by up to a factor of five are applied to two-dimensional finite-element models of the Mark I torus with shell diameter-to-thickness ratios of 0, 300, and 600. The results of these analyses support earlier conclusions that increased wall flexibility enhances attenuation of hydrodynamic loads and furthermore indicate that the magnitude of the attenuation is only weakly affected by the total impulse of the bubble pressure time-history.

The capabilities of Lawrence Livermore Laboratory's Calibration and Standards Facility are delineated. The facility's ability to provide radiation fields and measurements for a variety of radiation safety applications and the available radiation measurement equipment are described. The need for national laboratory calibration labs to maintain traceability to a national standard are discussed as well as the areas where improved standards and standardization techniques are needed.

Picosecond x-ray measurements relevant to the Livermore Laser Fusion Program are reviewed. Resolved to 15 picoseconds, streak camera detection capabilities extend from 100 eV to higher than 30 keV, with synchronous capabilities in the visible, near infrared, and ultraviolet. Capabilities include automated data retrieval using charge coupled devices (CCD's), absolute x-ray intensity levels, novel cathodes, x-ray mirror/reflector combinations, and a variety of x-ray imaging devices.

To understand the evolution of giant stars, it is important to pin down the masses for Cepheids. The 7- to 10-day bump Cepheids imply lower than evolutionary mass (60%). Recent theoretical work, though, indicates that for Cepheids with periods of 15 to 16 days, the best understanding of the light curves results from using evolutionary masses.

Investigating the temporal evolution of reversed-field equilibrium caused by transport processes requires the solution of the Grad-Shafranov equation and computation of field-line-averaged quantities. The technique for field-line averaging and the computation of the Grad-Shafranov equation are presented. Application of Green's function to specify the Grad-Shafranov equation boundary condition is discussed. Hill's vortex formulas used to verify certain computations are detailed. Use of computer software to implement computational methods is described.

Investigating the temporal evolution of reversed-field equilibrium caused by transport processes requires the solution of the Grad-Shafranov equation and computation of field-line-averaged quantities. The technique for field-line averaging and the computation of the Grad-Shafranov equation are presented. Application of Green's function to specify the Grad-Shafranov equation boundary condition is discussed. Hill's vortex formulas used to verify certain computations are detailed. Use of computer software to implement computational methods is described.

Saturation of the short laser pulse transmission of hot CO/sub 2/ has been studied experimentally and theoretically. Pure CO/sub 2/ at 200 torr and 400 +- 3/sup 0/C was contained in a special temperature-controlled 118 cm absorption cell. The cell's energy transmission was measured as a function of the incident pulse's fluence. The incident pulses' wavelengths were either at the P18 or P20 lines of the 10.6 ..mu..m band, and their temporal shape (FWHM of 1.6 ns) was kept fixed as the fluence was changed. The data showed that the absorption of hot CO/sub 2/ saturated differently at the two wavelengths, with the P20 transition being the harder to saturate.

The theoretical propagation of short (150-ps) laser pulses in a one-atmosphere CO/sub 2/ amplifier is investigated using a fully coherent density-matrix computer code. The influence of coherent effects and of the response times of the amplifying medium on the temporal shape of the output pulse is examined. It is found that short pulses, whose width is approximately equal to the T/sub 2/ time of the medium, can be effectively amplified.

Some recent developments in the use of complex basis function techniques to study resonance as well as certain types of non-resonant, scattering phenomena are discussed. Complex scaling techniques and other closely related methods have continued to attract the attention of computational physicists and chemists and have now reached a point of development where meaningful calculations on many-electron atoms and molecules are beginning to appear feasible.