ANS is committed to advancing, fostering, and promoting the development and application of nuclear sciences and technologies to benefit society.
Explore the many uses for nuclear science and its impact on energy, the environment, healthcare, food, and more.
Division Spotlight
Human Factors, Instrumentation & Controls
Improving task performance, system reliability, system and personnel safety, efficiency, and effectiveness are the division's main objectives. Its major areas of interest include task design, procedures, training, instrument and control layout and placement, stress control, anthropometrics, psychological input, and motivation.
Meeting Spotlight
2024 ANS Annual Conference
June 16–19, 2024
Las Vegas, NV|Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino
Standards Program
The Standards Committee is responsible for the development and maintenance of voluntary consensus standards that address the design, analysis, and operation of components, systems, and facilities related to the application of nuclear science and technology. Find out What’s New, check out the Standards Store, or Get Involved today!
Latest Magazine Issues
Apr 2024
Jan 2024
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
May 2024
Nuclear Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Zap Energy hits 37-million-degree electron temperatures in compact fusion device
Zap Energy announced April 23 that it has reached 1-3 keV plasma electron temperatures—roughly the equivalent of 11 to 37 million degrees Celsius—using its sheared-flow-stabilized Z-pinch approach to fusion. Reaching temperatures above that of the sun’s core (which is 10 million degrees Celsius temperature) is just one hurdle required before any fusion confinement concept can realistically pursue net gain and fusion energy.
D. R. Harding, M. D. Wittman, D. H. Edgell
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 63 | Number 2 | March-April 2013 | Pages 95-105
Technical Paper | Selected papers from 20th Target Fabrication Meeting, May 20-24, 2012, Santa Fe, NM, Guest Editor: Robert C. Cook | doi.org/10.13182/FST13-A16326
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Modifications to the National Ignition Facility (NIF) Cryogenic Target Positioner (Cryo-TarPos) are needed to provide polar-drive-ignition targets; ideally, these modifications will be completed and tested by 2017, the earliest date anticipated for polar-drive-ignition experiments. The extent of these modifications is defined by the mechanical and thermal requirements needed for the target to conform to the ignition design and the capabilities of the existing equipment. This paper describes the design of the polar-drive target assembly and the surrounding cryogenic environment that meets many of the specifications and requirements for the ignition target. Further work is necessary to optimize the design and provide more-detailed guidance for modifying the NIF Cryo-TarPos; however, there is sufficient information to begin the redesign effort at the conceptual level.A specialized facility has been constructed to test different target assembly and cryogenic hardware designs. The equipment provides the mechanical and cryogenic functionality available at the NIF, making it possible to test different target designs with deuterium in a configuration suitable for integration with the NIF Cryo-TarPos. The polar-drive target assembly has demonstrated a stable ice layer (170 to 350 m thick) and the ability to control the thickness to ±3 m of the desired value. The target is rotatable to fully characterize the D2 ice surface using shadowgraphy and X-ray phase contrast. Thermal models of the target and its environment indicate that (a) it should be possible to achieve the desired 1-m root-mean-square smoothness using D-T, (b) the fill tube has little effect on the ice smoothness, and (c) it is possible to shape the isotherms surrounding the target sufficiently to form an oblate ice layer that may be more desirable for polar-drive implosions.