Dr. John D. Sethian, of the
Laser Plasma Branch of the Naval Research Laboratory's (NRL's)
Plasma Physics Division, is the recipient of the Fusion Power
Associates (FPA) annual Leadership Award. FPAis a non-profit
foundation dedicated to the timely development of fusion energy.
The FPA Leadership Awards have been presented annually since
1980 to individuals who have shown outstanding leadership qualities
in accelerating the development of fusion.
According to the award citation,
"Dr. John D. Sethian is selected in recognition of his leadership
of the Electra laser program and especially his leadership in
organizing and coordinating a systems approach to the National
High Average Power Laser Program."
According to Dr. Sethian, "Fusion
powers the sun and stars. It occurs when deuterium and tritium,
two forms of hydrogen, are combined at high density and temperature.
If fusion could be harnessed on earth, the power plant would
have no chemical pollution, little or no long-term radioactive
waste, and unlimited fuel. (Deuterium comes from seawater; tritium
is created when neutrons from the fusion reaction interact with
lithium, a plentiful element)."
Researchers in the Laser Plasma
Branch are spearheading a promising approach to fusion: An array
of intense lasers compresses and heats a small pellet of fuel
to fusion ignition. The Branch designed and built Nike, the
world's largest krypton fluoride (KrF) laser. Using codes that
are benchmarked with experiments on Nike, a family of pellets
has been designed that can produce enough energy for a power
plant. These designs are based on one-dimensional computer simulations,
and are now being evaluated with two and three-dimensional simulations
using the Branch's state of the art parallel super computers.
Dr. Sethian is leading a national
program to develop the science and technologies needed to advance
this concept into a fusion power plant. The "High Average
Power Laser Program" brings together 24 institutions --
national labs, universities and private industries. This integrated
approach ensures Laser Fusion Energy will be developed as a coherent
system.
"A laser for a fusion power
plant must fire five times per second for several year's to meet
stringent cost and efficiency requirements. The Electra program
at NRL is developing the technologies for a KrF laser that can
meet these requirements. A companion program at Lawrence Livermore
National Laboratory is developing the technologies for a diode
pumped solid-state laser or DPPSL. The Electra facility was
commissioned early in 2001," concluded Dr. Sethian.
Dr. Sethian received
an AB in Physics from Princeton University in 1972, and a PhD
in Applied Physics from Cornell University in 1976. He came to
NRL in 1976.
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