Modeling of laser-induced damage and optic usage at the National Ignition Facility

Modeling of laser-induced optics damage has been introduced to benchmark existing optic usage at the National Ignition Facility (NIF) which includes the number of optics exchanged for damage repair. NIF has pioneered an optics recycle strategy to allow it to run the laser at capacity since fully commissioned in 2009 while keeping the cost of optics usage manageable. We will show how the damage model is being used to evaluate strategies to streamline our optics loop efficiency, as we strive to increase the laser shot rate without increasing operating costs.