About This Project

Dr Luis Sebastian CABALLERO BENDIXSEN

Bio

Dr. Luis Sebastian Caballero Bendixsen is a Senior Scientist at the Pulsed Power Group at First Light Fusion where he is responsible for the design, development and construction of pulsed power drivers used for fusion experiments. Since joining First Light Fusion in 2017 he has seen the development and operation of all the pulsed power generators in use at First Light Fusion. This includes Machine 3 which generates currents of up to 14 MA and 1000T magnetic fields used for electromagnetically propel projectiles used in First Light Fusion’s impact fusion. Previous to this Luis Sebastian hold several positions at the University of Oxford, Rutherford Appleton Laboratory’s Central Laser Facility, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile Physics Department and University of California San Diego’s Center for Energy Research working both on pulsed power development and plasma physics.

Abstract

Pulsed power and electromagnetic launch developments at First Light Fusion: an overview

First Light Fusion Ltd is a privately funded company researching energy generation using inertial confinement fusion. Efforts are centered around developing both simulation and experimental capabilities. For this, First Light Fusion (FLF) currently operates a pair of two-stage light gas guns with projectile velocities exceeding 7 km/s. Our electromagnetic launch capabilities include two low inductance capacitor bank pulsed power generators delivering 3.5 MA in 600 ns and 14 MA in 2 us. Experimental campaigns are focused on validation of Hytrac (multi-material hydro with front tracking and AMR) and B (parallel multi-material resistive MHD) codes, two simulation tools developed by FLF. This improves our understanding of target physics and electro-magnetic launch for projectile driven fusion experiments. Supporting our experimental facilities, world class diagnostic capabilities have been established at FLF. These include ultra-high-speed (~ 3 ns exposure) and streaked optical imaging, spectroscopy, VISAR and x-ray radiography.  Rapid feedback enables iteration within experimental campaigns and continuous improvement of the designs

During this talk an overview of the pulsed power capabilities that FLF has developed over the last 5 years will be presented, with emphasis on the design and development of M3 (14 MA in 2 us). This driver was commissioned at the end of 2018 with science experiments starting January 2019. It was designed primarily as an electromagnetic launch driver and has delivered measured projectile velocities around 12 km/s, with impact timing analysis suggesting speeds approaching 20 km/s. Plate flyer experiments will be discussed in detail showing FLF electromagnetic launch capabilities, diagnostic suite, and analysis.