Xcimer Energy has activated its Phoenix laser system, which the fusion startup says is the largest privately owned laser in the world.
The company announced the milestone on Wednesday as it continues work on a fusion energy system modeled on the National Ignition Facility (NIF).
Following NIF’s approach
The NIF demonstrated in December 2022 that a controlled fusion reaction could produce more energy than was required to ignite it.
Its system uses:
- 192 laser beams
- A fuel target smaller than a pencil eraser
- A gold enclosure that converts laser energy into X-rays
Those X-rays compress the fuel pellet until atoms fuse and release energy.
Xcimer is pursuing a similar approach.
The company believes more powerful and less complex lasers could make the technology commercially viable.
How the system works
Xcimer’s planned power plant would use two lasers that fire pulses lasting microseconds.
Those pulses would pass through a compression system that delivers the energy to the fuel target within nanoseconds.
Faster compression increases the chances of generating useful fusion reactions.
Phoenix laser
Phoenix uses excimer amplification, a technology also used in semiconductor manufacturing.
According to Xcimer, the krypton-fluoride laser:
- Produces more than 1 kilojoule of energy at full power.
- Has a core measuring 38 meters in length.
Although Phoenix is the largest privately owned laser, it remains far smaller than the system needed for a commercial reactor.
The company estimates a future power plant would require lasers capable of producing more than 12 megajoules.
Next milestones
Xcimer plans to complete a prototype system in 2028.
After that, the company intends to develop a larger device designed to generate at least as much energy as it consumes.
Its first commercial-scale fusion power plant is targeted for the mid-2030s.
TL;DR:
Fusion startup Xcimer Energy has activated the Phoenix laser system, which it says is the largest privately owned laser in the world. The company hopes the technology will eventually lead to commercial fusion power plants.
AI summary:
- Xcimer Energy has turned on the Phoenix laser system.
- The company says it is the world’s largest privately owned laser.
- The design is based on the National Ignition Facility’s approach.
- Phoenix generates more than 1 kilojoule of energy.
- Xcimer aims to build a commercial fusion plant in the mid-2030s.
