Target diagnostics for the National Ignition Facility

Summary form only given, as follows. The proposed National Ignition Facility (NIF) is a large (1.8 MJ on target at 0.35 /spl mu/m) multi-beam laser facility that wilt be used for inertial confinement fusion (ICF). ICF implosions at this facility will produce core plasma temperatures over 10 keV and densities over 100 g/cm/sup 3/. Properties of these plasmas can be measured (diagnosed) by a variety of optical, X-ray and nuclear diagnostic techniques such as those used at existing facilities like the Nova laser. Some of these currently used techniques will be directly applicable to NIF. Others, particularly the nuclear based ones due to the expected large increase in nuclear reactions at NIF, will significantly change. An overview of the techniques used at Nova and the plans for diagnostics at NIF will be presented.