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Conference Spotlight
Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
September 8–11, 2025
Atlanta, GA|Atlanta Marriott Marquis
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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!
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Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
The RAIN scale: A good intention that falls short
Radiation protection specialists agree that clear communication of radiation risks remains a vexing challenge that cannot be solved solely by finding new ways to convey technical information.
Earlier this year, an article in Nuclear News described a new radiation risk communication tool, known as the Radiation Index, or, RAIN (“Let it RAIN: A new approach to radiation communication,” NN, Jan. 2025, p. 36). The authors of the article created the RAIN scale to improve radiation risk communication to the general public who are not well-versed in important aspects of radiation exposures, including radiation dose quantities, units, and values; associated health consequences; and the benefits derived from radiation exposures.
Andrew J. Schmitt, J. W. Bates, S. P. Obenschain, S. T. Zalesak, D. E. Fyfe, R. Betti
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 56 | Number 1 | July 2009 | Pages 377-383
IFE Target Design | Eighteenth Topical Meeting on the Technology of Fusion Energy (Part 1) | doi.org/10.13182/FST09-A8930
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
New approaches in target design have increased the possibility that useful fusion power can be generated with sub-MJ lasers. We have performed many 1D and 2D simulations that examine the characteristics of target designs for sub-MJ lasers. These designs use the recently-proposed shock-ignition target scheme, which utilizes a separate high-intensity pulse to induce ignition. A promising feature of these designs is their significantly higher gains at lower energies (one dimensional (1D) gain ~ 100 at Elaser ~ 250kJ) than can be expected for the conventional central ignition scheme. The results of these simulations are shown and we discuss the implications for target fabrication and laser design. Of particular interest are the constraints on the target and laser from asymmetries due to target imperfections and laser imprint.
