Numerical Study of Carbon Nanofoam Targets for Laser-Driven Inertial Fusion Experiments

Abstract

Porous materials have peculiar characteristics that are relevant for inertial confinement fusion (ICF). Among them, chemically produced foams are proved to be able to smooth the laser inhomogeneities and to increase the coupling of the laser with the target. Foams realized with other elements and techniques may prove useful as well for ICF applications. In this work, we explore the potential of a novel class of porous materials for ICF, namely, carbon nanofoams produced with the pulsed laser deposition (PLD) technique, by means of hydrodynamic numerical simulations. By comparison with a simulation of solid-density carbon, PLD nanofoams show a higher pressure at the shock front, which could make them potential good candidates as ablators for a capsule for direct-drive fusion.

Versatile Synthesis of Nanofoams through Femtosecond Pulsed Laser Deposition

“…In our previous works we also performed a quantitative analysis of the nanofoams uniformity features, aided by energy-dispersive X-spectroscopy (EDXS) maps and a method based on their Fourier transform. [26,51,56] Due to the different properties of the materials investigated in this work (higher-Z elements together with higher density and film thickness), the same approach would not be feasible. Moreover, in our previous works, we showed that the results of the EDXS maps' investigation were in agreement with the qualitative analysis of the nanofoam morphology through SEM micrographs, which is already rich in information and therefore has been chosen as the focus of this investigation.…”

“…[15,16] In the past years, nanofoams have been studied as effective enhancers in high-intensity laser-matter interaction [17] for laser-driven ion acceleration, [18][19][20][21] neutron [22] and radioisotopes generation, [23] and inertial confinement fusion. [24][25][26] Moreover, nanofoams can serve as model materials for fundamental nanotechnology research. Scientists study their unique properties and behavior to gain insights into nanoscale phenomena, which can lead to further advancements in materials science.…”