Status of NIF mirror technologies for completion of the NIF facility
2008
The 1600 mirrors required for the National Ignition Facility (NIF) are now coated with the last optics currently being
installed. The combined surface area of the NIF mirrors is almost 450 square meters, roughly 3.4 times greater than the
surface area of the two Keck primary mirrors. Additionally, the power handling specification of NIF mirrors is 19 orders
of magnitude greater than that of the Keck mirrors. The NIF laser will be at least 40× greater energy than the previous
LLNL fusion laser called NOVA. To manufacture these mirrors, a number of new technologies (electrolytic in-situ
dressing, ion figuring, source stabilization) were used that were not available for previous fusion laser optics. Post
deposition technologies designed to increase laser resistance
(off-line laser conditioning, solarization, air knives) have
also been utilized. This paper summarizes the differences in technologies used to manufacture NIF mirrors from those
used for previous fusion lasers and examines potential future technologies that would enable higher fluence operations
and extend lifetimes.
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