The National Ignition Facility and the golden age of high energy density science

The National Ignition Facility (NIF) is a 192-beam Nd:glass laser facility being constructed at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) to conduct research in inertial confinement fusion (ICF) and high energy density (HED) science. When completed, NIF will produce 1.8 MJ, 500 TW of ultraviolet light, making it the world’s largest and highest-energy laser system. The NIF is poised to become the world’s preeminent facility for conducting ICF and fusion energy research and for studying matter at extreme densities and temperatures.