Computational physicist Jose Milovich of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) and colleagues have been awarded the 2025 Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion (PPCF) Outstanding Paper Prize for their computational research on capsule implosions during laser fusion.
The work – Understanding asymmetries using integrated simulations of capsule implosions in low gas-fill hohlraums at the National Ignition Facility – is an important part of understanding the physics at the heart of inertial confinement fusion (ICF).
Fusion is usually performed via two types of plasma confinement. Magnetic involves using magnetic fields to hold stable a plasma of deuterium-tritium (D-T), while inertial confinement uses rapid compression, usually by lasers, to create a confined plasma for a short period of time.
The award-winning work was based on experiments carried out at the National Ignition Facility (NIF) based in California, which is one of the leading fusion centres in the world.
During NIF’s ICF experiments, a slight imbalance of the laser can induce motion of the hot central core of an ignition capsule, which contains the D-T fuel. This effect results in a reduced performance.
Experiments at NIF in 2018 found that laser imbalances alone, however, could not account for the motion of the capsule. The simulations carried out by Milovich and colleagues demonstrated that other factors were at play such as non-concentricity of the layers of the material surrounding the D-T fuel as well as “drive perturbations” induced by diagnostic windows on the implosion.
Changes made following the team’s findings then helped towards the recent demonstration of “energy breakeven” at NIF in December 2022.
Awarded each year, the PPCF prize aims to highlight work of the highest quality and impact published in the journal. The award was judged on originality, scientific quality and impact as well as being based on community nominations and publication metrics. The prize will be presented at the 51st European Physical Society Conference on Plasma Physics in Vilnius, Lithuania, on 7–11 July.
The journal is now seeking nominations for next year’s prize, which will focus on papers in magnetic confinement fusion.
Below, Milovich talks to Physics World about prize, the future of fusion and what advice he has for early-career researchers.
What does winning the 2025 PPCF Outstanding Paper Prize mean to you and for your work?
The award is an incredible honour to me and my collaborators as a recognition of the detailed work required to make inertial fusion in the laboratory a reality and the dream of commercial fusion energy a possibility. The paper presented numerical confirmation of how seemingly small effects can significantly impact the performance of fusion targets. This study led to target modifications and revised manufacturing specifications for improved performance. My collaborators and I would like to deeply thank PPCF for granting us this award.
What excites you about fusion?
Nuclear fusion is the process that powers the stars, and achieving those conditions in the laboratory is exciting in many ways. It is an interesting scientific problem in its own right and it is an incredibly challenging engineering problem to handle the extreme conditions required for successful energy production. This is an exciting time since the possibility of realizing this energy source became tangibly closer two years ago when NIF successfully demonstrated that more energy can be released from D-T fusion than the laser energy delivered to the target.
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What are your thoughts on the future direction of ICF and NIF?
While the challenges ahead to make ICF commercially feasible are daunting, we are well positioned to address them by developing new technologies and innovative target configurations. Applications of artificial intelligence to reactor plant designs, optimized operations, and improvements on plasma confinement could potentially lead to improved designs at a fraction of the cost. The challenges are many but the potential for providing a clean and inexhaustible source of energy for the benefit of mankind is invigorating.
What advice would you give to people thinking about embarking on a career in fusion?
This is an exciting time to get involved in fusion. The latest achievements at NIF have shown that fusion is possible. There are countless difficulties to overcome, making it an ideal time to devote one’s career in this area. My advice is to get involved now since, at this early stage, any contribution will have a major and lasting impact on mankind’s future energy needs.
