Computational Scaling Laws for Fusion Yield in Plasma-Jet Magneto-Inertial Fusion

The Plasma Liner eXperiment (PLX) under DOE ARPA-E BETHE program, has recently started demonstrating target-liner integrated experiments. The formation of the magnetized target by head-on collision of higher velocity, low-z, pre-magnetized plasma jets, and spherically imploding lower velocity, high-z, unmagnetized plasma liner onto the magnetized targets, compressing the targets to study the critical parameters for fusion conditions. A total of 36 jets (liner and target) are formed by coaxial plasma accelerators. Our 3D simulation tool SPFMax has been validated against these experimental data, providing confidence to perform integrated simulations including magnetized target stagnation, plasma liner formation, and target compression. SPFMax can model effects of plasma jet initial conditions on fusion yield in a reactor relevant parameter space and determine the computational scaling laws for Plasma-Jet Magneto-Inertial Fusion (PJMIF). Effects of increasing number of magnetized jets, increasing jets velocity, increasing liner jets initial mass, and increasing magnetization of target jets are the prime parameters under study for determining the potential pathway to enter fusion self-ignition parameter space for scaling of PJMIF to reactor relevant fusion energy.