Abstract
Pellet injection and repetitive laser illumination are key technologies for realizing inertial fusion energy.
The Graduate School for the Creation of New Photonics Industries, Hamamatsu Photonics K. K. and
Toyota Motor Corporation demonstrate the pellet injection, counter laser beams’ engagement and
neutron generation. Deuterated polystyrene (CD) bead pellets, after free-falling for a distance of 18 cm
at 1 Hz, are successfully engaged by two counter laser beams from a diode-pumped, ultra-intense laser
HAMA. The laser energy, pulse duration, wavelength and the intensity are 0.63 J per beam, 104 fs,
811 nm and 4.7 × 1018 W/cm2, respectively. The irradiated pellets produce D (D, n)3 He-reacted
neutrons with a maximum yield of 9.5 × 104/4π sr/shot. A straight channel with 10 μm-diameter is found
through the beads. The pellet size is 1 mm. The results indicate potentially useful technologies for the
next step in realizing inertial fusion energy. The results are reviewed as well as some oversea activities.
