Uniform volume heating of mixed fuels within the ICF paradigm

Abstract

The paper investigates the feasibility of achieving uniform high-power volume heating for a fusion reactor concept employing a mixed fuel composition involving $\text{pBDT}$. The realm of mixed fuel fusion concepts remains relatively unexplored. The pursuit of uniform high-power volume heating presents a technological challenge, yet it bears ramifications for fusion reactor designs. In this study, we introduce the proposition of employing embedded nano-structures that represent structured foams. These structured foams interact with short-pulse lasers, thereby achieving ultra-high power volume heating both within the fuel and the adjacent hohlraums. Notably, structured foams exhibit superior efficiency compared to unstructured foams, plasma or surfaces when it comes to absorbing high-power, short-pulse lasers. The suggested incorporation of these embedded structured foams interacting with an array of ultra-short laser pulses offers a high laser absorption power density, along with meticulous control over energy and power distribution within the fuel, both in spatial and temporal dimensions. This holds the potential for the realization of fusion reactors characterized by straight-forward designs and low complexity, where $Q_F \approx Q_T > 1$ is expected for the fuel and target gains. Depending on the fuel composition they can be strong neutron sources.