Ignition and Burn Propagation in ICF Targets

The possibility of producing an inhomogeneous plasma in order to initiate a self-sustained fusion reaction is the most important aspect of the physics of inertially confined fusion using a spherical target. The energy efficiency of a microexplosion of a target used in producing an inertially confined plasma is characterized by the gain coefficient, i.e., the ratio of the released fusion energy to the energy of the driver, that acts upon the target. The distinguishing features of the physics of the thermonuclear burning of inertially confined plasmas, as compared with magnetically confined ones, are the energy transfer by fusion particles and the hydrodynamic motion of the target material. One can distinguish between the primary fusion particles, which are produced in fusion reactions involving the plasma nuclei, and the secondary particles, i.e., those which are formed in fusion reactions between the plasma nuclei and the primary particles.