Laser Megajoule target production. Ballpoint pen (upper right) being compared in size to a target (gold-plated cylinder) being produced for the Laser
Laser Megajoule target production. Ballpoint pen (upper right) being compared in size to a target (gold-plated cylinder) being produced for the Laser Megajoule (LMJ). The LMJ is an experimental nuclear fusion device being built near Bordeaux, France, using the inertial confinement fusion (ICF) method. It uses 240 laser beams and megajoules of power to heat the hollow cylinder to the point where it emits X-rays. The X-rays heat a spherical deuterium-tritium fuel pellet inside the cylinder until fusion and power generation occurs. Construction of the LMJ started with the Laser Integration Line (LIL, 8 lasers), completed in 2002 and due to be expanded into the full LMJ by 2012. Photographed at the Valduc facility of the French Atomic Agency (CEA).
Size: 5334px × 3558px
Photo credit: © PATRICK LANDMANN/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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