Understanding the Evolution of the Fuel-Liner Interface During the Laser Preheat Stage in Magnetized Liner Inertial Fusion Experiments

Magnetized Liner Inertial Fusion (MagLIF) is a fusion concept requiring fuel magnetization, laser preheat, and target implosion to produce fusion conditions at stagnation. During preheat, a laser enters the target axially through a laser entrance window and heats the fuel to hundreds of eV. The fuel plasma radiates soft x-rays, which deposit energy in the target wall. Additionally, a radially expanding blast wave forms within the fuel and interacts with the target wall. These mechanisms can result in liner material mixing into the fuel, which degrades performance, as well as hydrodynamic motion of the liner. Since laser preheat typically occurs approximately when the inner surface of the target begins to implode, it is difficult to characterize the influence of the preheat stage on mix and liner dynamics. However, in the absence of an implosion, the evolution of the fuel-liner interface can be more easily observed.