Fluid and kinetic simulation of inertial confinement fusion plasmas Original Research Article

The main features of codes for inertial confinement fusion studies are outlined, and a few recent simulation results are presented. The two-dimensional Lagrangian fluid code DUED is used to study target evolution, including beam-driven compression, hydrodynamic stability, hot spot formation, ignition and burn. An electro-magnetic particle-in-cell (PIC) code is applied to the study of ultraintense laser–plasma interaction and generation of fast electron jets. A relativistic 3D collisionless fluid model addresses relativistic electron beam propagation in a dense plasma.