Applications of a Rayleigh-Taylor model to direct-drive laser fusion.

This paper presents a simple physics-based model for the interpretation of key metrics in laser direct drive. The only input parameters required are target scale, in-flight aspect ratio, and beam-to-target radius, and the importance of each has been quantified with a tailored set of cryogenic implosion experiments. These analyses lead to compact and accurate predictions of the fusion yield and areal density as a function of hydrodynamic stability, and they suggest new ways to take advantage of direct drive.

Three-dimensional reconstruction of laser-direct-drive inertial confinement fusion hot-spot plasma from x-ray diagnostics on the OMEGA laser facility (invited).

A deep-learning convolutional neural network (CNN) is used to infer, from x-ray images along multiple lines of sight, the low-mode shape of the hot-spot emission of deuterium-tritium (DT) laser-direct-drive cryogenic implosions on OMEGA. The motivation of this approach is to develop a physics-informed 3-D reconstruction technique that can be performed within minutes to facilitate the use of the results to inform changes to the initial target and laser conditions for the subsequent implosion. The CNN is trained on a 3D radiation-hydrodynamic simulation database to relate 2D x-ray images to 3D emissivity at stagnation.

Optically multiplexed neutron time-of-flight technique for inertial confinement fusion.

Neutron time-of-flight (nTOF) detectors are crucial in diagnosing the performance of inertial confinement fusion (ICF) experiments, which implode targets of deuterium-tritium fuel to achieve thermonuclear conditions. These detectors utilize the fusion neutron energy spectrum to extract key measurements, including the hotspot ion temperature and fuel areal density. Previous work [Danly et al.

The next-generation magnetic recoil spectrometer (MRSnext) on OMEGA and NIF for diagnosing ion temperature, yield, areal density, and alpha heating.

The next-generation magnetic recoil spectrometer (MRSnext) is being designed to replace the current MRS at the National Ignition Facility and OMEGA for measurements of the neutron spectrum from an inertial confinement fusion implosion. The MRSnext will provide a far-superior performance and faster data turnaround than the current MRS systems, i.e.

Characterization of the upgraded single-line-of-sight time-resolved x-ray imager using short-pulse visible and UV lasers.

The single-line-of-sight time-resolved x-ray imager (SLOS-TRXI), a fast-gated x-ray imager used for capturing x-ray self-emission in inertial confinement fusion experiments on OMEGA, has been upgraded and characterized. SLOS-TRXI combines an electron-dilation imager and a hybrid complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (hCMOS) sensor to capture multiple gated frames on a single line of sight with a temporal resolution of ∼40 ps and a spatial resolution of 10 µm. The original hCMOS sensor with four frames was replaced with a newer-generation hCMOS sensor having eight frames.

Improved filters for angular filter refractometry.

Angular filter refractometry is an optical diagnostic that measures the absolute contours of a line-integrated density gradient by placing a filter with alternating opaque and transparent zones in the focal plane of a probe beam, which produce corresponding alternating light and dark regions in the image plane. Identifying transitions between these regions with specific zones on the angular filter (AF) allows the line-integrated density to be determined, but the sign of the density gradient at each transition is degenerate and must be broken using other information about the object plasma. Additional features from diffraction in the filter plane often complicate data analysis.

Modeling of a spatially resolved ion temperature diagnostic for inertial confinement fusion.

The performance of modern laser-driven inertial confinement fusion (ICF) experiments is degraded by contamination of the deuterium-tritium (DT) fuel with high-Z material during compression. Simulations suggest that this mix can be described by the ion temperature distribution of the implosion, given that such contaminants deviate in temperature from the surrounding DT plasma. However, existing neutron time-of-flight (nTOF) diagnostics only measure the spatially integrated ion temperature.

Contrast optimization of Fresnel zone plate imaging.

Fresnel zone plates (FZPs) are circular diffractive elements that operate as a lens for x-rays. They have gained interest in the field of laser-plasma physics due to their ability to achieve higher spatial resolution than pinholes. Their design and implementation are complicated by the fact that a significant amount of the x-rays passing through the FZP will not diffract (zeroth order) and present a background to the measurement.

Calibration of the sub-aperture backscatter system on OMEGA EP.

The sub-aperture backscatter (SABS) diagnostic on the OMEGA EP Laser System [Waxer et al., Opt. Photonics News 16, 30 (2005)] is a diagnostic that is used to measure the backscattered and sidescattered light during laser-plasma interaction experiments [W.

Measurement of laser absorption in underdense plasmas using near-field imaging of the incident and transmitted beams.

Measurements of laser absorption in high-temperature, underdense plasmas produced at the Omega Laser Facility are made using two near-field imaging detectors that diagnose the spatial profile and energy of the port P9 beam before and after it transmits through the plasma. The incident beam is sampled using a partial reflection from a full-aperture, (30 cm-diam) uncoated wedge pickoff located before the target chamber vacuum window and final focus lens assembly. A concave mirror reduces the reflected beam size, allowing it to be recorded directly using a charged-coupled device (CCD) camera.

Instrument design for an inertial confinement fusion ion temperature imager.

A mix of contaminant mass is a known, performance-limiting factor for laser-driven inertial confinement fusion (ICF). It has also recently been shown that the contaminant mass is not necessarily in thermal equilibrium with the deuterium-tritium plasma [B. M.

Design of the high-yield time-gated x-ray hot-spot imager for OMEGA.

Time-resolved x-ray self-emission imaging of hot spots in inertial confinement fusion experiments along several lines of sight provides critical information on the pressure and the transient morphology of the hot spot on the University of Rochester's OMEGA Laser System. At least three quasi-orthogonal lines of sight are required to infer the tomographic information of the hot spots of deuterium-tritium cryogenic layered implosions. OMEGA currently has two time-gated x-ray hot-spot imagers: the time-resolved Kirkpatrick-Baez x-ray microscope and the single-line-of-sight, time-resolved x-ray imager (SLOS-TRXI).

The phase-2 particle x-ray temporal diagnostic for simultaneous measurement of multiple x-ray and nuclear emission histories from OMEGA implosions (invited).

Electron-temperature (T) measurements in implosions provide valuable diagnostic information, as T is negligibly affected by residual flows and other non-thermal effects unlike ion-temperature inferred from a fusion product spectrum. In OMEGA cryogenic implosions, measurement of T(t) can be used to investigate effects related to time-resolved hot-spot energy balance. The newly implemented phase-2 Particle X-ray Temporal Diagnostic (PXTD) utilizes four fast-rise (∼15 ps) scintillator-channels with distinct x-ray filtering.

Three-dimensional hot-spot x-ray emission tomography from cryogenic deuterium-tritium direct-drive implosions on OMEGA.

A three-dimensional model of the hot-spot x-ray emission has been developed and applied to the study of low-mode drive asymmetries in direct-drive inertial confinement fusion implosions on OMEGA with cryogenic deuterium-tritium targets. The steady-state model assumes an optically thin plasma and the data from four x-ray diagnostics along quasi-orthogonal lines of sight are used to obtain a tomographic reconstruction of the hot spot. A quantitative analysis of the hot-spot shape is achieved by projecting the x-ray emission into the diagnostic planes and comparing this projection to the measurements.

Reprint of Implementation of a pharmacist-led ARVSP in an academic hospital to reduce ART errors.

Objectives: The primary objective was to compare the percentage of Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) uncorrected errors during hospital admission before and after the implementation of an Antiretroviral Stewardship Program (ARVSP).

Practice Description: This was a 2-year single-center, pre-post quality improvement study. Included in the study were admitted patients at least 18 years of age, diagnosed with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), and taking at least 1 antiretroviral.

Implementation of a pharmacist-led ARVSP in an academic hospital to reduce ART errors.

Objectives: The primary objective was to compare the percentage of Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) uncorrected errors during hospital admission before and after the implementation of an Antiretroviral Stewardship Program (ARVSP).

Practice Description: This was a 2-year single-center, pre-post quality improvement study. Included in the study were admitted patients at least 18 years of age, diagnosed with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), and taking at least 1 antiretroviral.

High-resolution x-ray radiography with Fresnel zone plates on the University of Rochester's OMEGA Laser Systems.

Experiments performed at the Laboratory for Laser Energetics with a continuous-wave (cw) x-ray source and on the OMEGA and OMEGA EP Laser Systems [Boehly et al., Opt. Commun.

"No One's Coming to Save Us": Centering Lived Experiences in Rural Food Insecurity Organizing.

This essay draws on fieldwork with a nonprofit organization in Southeast Ohio in order to gain insight into the unique challenges of rural food insecurity. A series of narrative vignettes illustrate how these challenges are maintained through dominant narratives about what food insecurity, charity, poverty, and ruralness "look like." These moments disrupt the binary categories of who and who aid, and they illuminate how stereotypes and uniformed "solutions" can hinder efforts to create rural food security.

Evolution of the Electron Distribution Function in the Presence of Inverse Bremsstrahlung Heating and Collisional Ionization.

The picosecond evolution of non-Maxwellian electron distribution functions was measured in a laser-produced plasma using collective electron plasma wave Thomson scattering. During the laser heating, the distribution was measured to be approximately super-Gaussian due to inverse bremsstrahlung heating. After the heating laser turned off, collisional ionization caused further modification to the distribution function while increasing electron density and decreasing temperature.

A Case of Pulmonary Histoplasmosis Presenting with Hypercalcemia and Altered Mental Status in a Patient Following Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation.

BACKGROUND Histoplasmosis results from the inhalation of spores from the fungus, Histoplasma capsulatum. A case is presented of pulmonary histoplasmosis associated with altered mental state and hypercalcemia following allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation for acute myeloid leukemia (AML). CASE REPORT A 75-year-old man with a five-day history of AML treated with allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, presented with weakness, fatigue, and slow mentation.

Native valve infective endocarditis due to in a non-Hodgkin's lymphoma patient.

species are typically considered contaminants from skin and mucous membranes. However, especially in severely immunocompromised patients, a blood culture with could be the cause of a significant infection. We report a 65-year-old female with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma who developed native valve infective endocarditis due to .

Plasma Density Measurements of the Inner Shell Release.

The material release on the side opposite to the laser drive of a CH shell was probed at conditions relevant to inertial confinement fusion. The release was found to expand further with a longer scale length than that predicted by radiation-hydrodynamic simulations. The simulations show that a relaxation of the back side of the shell consistent with measurements explains the experimentally observed reduction in inertial confinement fusion implosion performance-specifically, reduced areal density at peak compression.

A ten-inch manipulator (TIM) based fast-electron spectrometer with multiple viewing angles (OU-ESM).

The measurement of angularly resolved energy distributions of mega-electron-volt electrons is important for gaining a better understanding of the interaction of ultra-intense laser pulses with plasma, especially for fast-ignition laser-fusion research. It is also crucial when evaluating the production of suprathermal (several 10-keV) electrons through laser-plasma instabilities in conventional hot-spot-ignition and shock-ignition research. For these purposes, we developed a 10-in.

The single-line-of-sight, time-resolved x-ray imager diagnostic on OMEGA.

The single-line-of-sight, time-resolved x-ray imager (SLOS-TRXI) on OMEGA is one of a new generation of fast-gated x-ray cameras comprising an electron pulse-dilation imager and a nanosecond-gated, burst-mode, hybrid complementary metal-oxide semiconductor sensor. SLOS-TRXI images the core of imploded cryogenic deuterium-tritium shells in inertial confinement fusion experiments in the ∼4- to 9-keV photon energy range with a pinhole imager onto a photocathode. The diagnostic is mounted on a fixed port almost perpendicular to a 16-channel, framing-camera-based, time-resolved Kirkpatrick-Baez microscope, providing a second time-gated line of sight for hot-spot imaging on OMEGA.

Sub-nanosecond single line-of-sight (SLOS) x-ray imagers (invited).

A new generation of fast-gated x-ray framing cameras have been developed that are capable of capturing multiple frames along a single line-of-sight with 30 ps temporal resolution. The instruments are constructed by integrating pulse-dilation electron imaging with burst mode hybrid-complimentary metal-oxide-semiconductor sensors. Two such instruments have been developed, characterized, and fielded at the National Ignition Facility and the OMEGA laser.