Study on the E-beam pulse width scaling for a 25-kilojoule KrF amplifier

The KrF laser was considered as an ICF driver candidate. The laser is not an energy storing system, the output energy of an amplifier is delivered over the entire pulse width of the excitation source. The F-beam pumping is preferred for large energy systems. The e-beam pulsewidth is constrained to a few hundred nanoseconds by laser operation and pulsed power considerations. Angular multiplexing of probe beams through the amplifier is preferred for bridging this difference in timing requirements. Progressively shorter target irradiation times may be obtained by using shorter pulse probe beams and by either increasing the number of angular multiplexed beams or by decreasing the e-beam pulsewidth.