(AGENPARL) – ven 08 settembre 2023 A weekly compendium of media reports on science and technology achievements
at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Though the Laboratory reviews
items for overall accuracy, the reporting organizations are responsible for
the content in the links below.
….. LLNL Report, Sept. 8, 2023
/Diablo Magazine/ recently named LLNL’s Annie Kritcher as one of the East
Bay prize winners. Photo by Blaise Douros/LLNL.
… It’s a team effort
https://www.diablomag.com/people-style/people/east-bay-prizewinners/article_ef60c432-4443-11ee-acd6-3f5b6ab18da3.html
The Tri-Valley area can claim an astonishing number of top prize winners, as
there are many Nobelists, MacArthur “Genuises,” and other awardees with
roots in our own backyard. Meet three of the most recent honorees —
physicist Andrea Kritcher, lawyer Priti Krishtel, and writer Hua Hsu.
Kritcher played a key role in Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s
attainment of fusion ignition — a breakthrough with epic implications.
For 60 years, scientists and engineers have been on a quest to achieve
controlled nuclear fusion ignition — a major step on the path to clean,
limitless energy. When it finally happened on Dec. 5 last year, most of the
team behind the feat were asleep. “We were so excited, but individually
from home,” says Andrea Kritcher, the principal designer of the experiment,
who learned of its success at 1 a.m.
That humans can now ignite and control a plasma, like a small sun, was hailed
by U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm as “one of the most
impressive scientific feats of the 21st century,” and it landed Kritcher on
the 2023 /Time/ 100. The honor highlights the most influential people of the
year and celebrates them at an event at New York’s Lincoln Center.
It’s been a whirlwind, media-filled several months for Kritcher, a mother
of three who normally leads a quiet life in Livermore. And she always credits
the whole interdisciplinary team at the Lab who contributed to this
achievement. “You sort of pinch yourself when you’re standing next to Ali
Wong or Katie Couric,” she said. “But I’m just trying to go with it and
have fun and enjoy this time. I think it’s awesome that people care so much
about what we’re doing.”
Read More
https://www.diablomag.com/people-style/people/east-bay-prizewinners/article_ef60c432-4443-11ee-acd6-3f5b6ab18da3.html
LLNL researchers and collaborators are working a system using gallium nitrate
to harness sunshine into carbon free hydrogen fuel. Image by Adobe Stock.
… Walking on sunshine
Scientists from the University of Michigan have made important discoveries
regarding the semiconductive use of gallium nitrate (GaN) three years ago,
focusing on the advantages it has to offer solar energy technology. More
recently that same discovery is being examined with respect to the advantages
it presents to hydrogen fuel production.
The researchers found that silicon and GaN could be used in an artificial
photosynthesis device. The device made of silicon and GaN was able to harness
sunlight into carbon-free hydrogen fuel with twice the efficiency and
stability of existing technology. With such a focus on H2 as the world
decarbonizes and governments provide grants, subsidies and tax breaks to
companies developing new tech in this area, scientists are taking a closer
look at that discovery.
Researchers from Lawrence Livermore and Lawrence Berkeley national
laboratories are working with a team at the University of Michigan. Together,
they have discovered a self-improving property in Silicon and GaN (Si/GaN)
that plays a role in the high efficiency of the material and its stable
performance in the conversion of sunlight and water into carbon-free H2.
Read More
LLNL’s Tayyab Suratwala recently gave a keynote presentation on the role of
optics at the National Ignition Facility. Photo by LLNL.
… Seeing fusion through optics
https://www.optica.org/Optica_Blog/2023/June/Optical_technologies_enabling_fusion_ignition_at_t
The 2023 Optical Fabrication and Testing Topical Meeting (OF&T) recently met
in Québec City, Canada, as a part of Optica’s Design and Fabrication
Congress to convene on new concepts and emerging applications in optics
manufacturing and metrology.
Seats were filled to hear the keynote presentation by Optica fellow Tayyab
Suratwala, program director for Optics and Materials Science and Technology
(OMST) at Lawrence Livermore. He discussed optical technologies behind one of
the most notable scientific breakthroughs in decades.
To keep NIF in a state of continuous operation and testing, Suratwala’s
team has developed a robust system of keeping the optics in good function by
routinely recycling some of them to repair any laser damage, at a small
fraction of the cost and time for obtaining a new optic. NIF’s optics are
routinely tested, removed, repaired and cleaned on-site. At the same time,
the team experiments with new fabrication and processing methods to enable
higher optic laser damage resistance, and therefore greater NIF energy and
power. Suratwala said, “A 20-year-long science and technology investment
has enabled transitioning optical fabrication and processing from an
‘art’ to more of a science. Tremendous progress has been made in
improving the damage resistance of as-fabricated fused silica optics.”
“Managing NIF optics damage is like peeling a growing onion…as challenges
are mitigated, new challenges arise with increased power and energy,”
Suratwala said. “NIF final optics quality and configuration has evolved,
leading to reduction in laser damage. We’ve also found success with novel
production level metrologies to ensure high quality of the delivered
precision optics.”
Read More
https://www.optica.org/Optica_Blog/2023/June/Optical_technologies_enabling_fusion_ignition_at_t
NASA Astronaut and former LLNL engineer Jose Hernandez is the subject of a
new biopic coming out in September. Photo courtesy of NASA.**
… A role model like no other
When José Hernández spoke about his 2009 trip into space as flight
specialist on the shuttle Discovery — and the journey from the fields to
the stars — Francisco Moreno paid attention.
The 5-foot-8, 123-pound sophomore vowed he will fulfill his dream of playing
in the NFL as a wide receiver. “His talk encourages me a little bit,”
said Moreno, following Hernández’s presentation in the Parlier High School
gym. “It’s like if I believe that I can do it — and if my mom has faith
in me — then I believe that I can do it.”
“He inspired me more, because if somebody from México and a small town
like Stockton could do it, you just got to believe and achieve. You’ll be
able to reach your goals,” Moreno said.
Hernández’s life story is depicted in the biopic “A Million Miles
Away,” starring Michael Peña, which debuts Sept. 15 on Amazon Prime Video.
Read More
Pacific Northwest and Lawrence Livermore national laboratories and
collaborators are using machine learning to build a database to guide
decision-makers on vaccine development. Image by Adobe Stock.
… A RAPTER for vaccines
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2023-08-vaccine-machine.html
From tackling homework challenges to drafting emails, people are discovering
a vast array of applications for natural language processing tools like
generative artificial intelligence (AI) engines.
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Lawrence Livermore National
Laboratory, Harvard Medical School (HMS) and collaborators are using this
same kind of technology to build a knowledge base in order to guide
decision-makers on vaccine development. Through the Rapid Assessment of
Platform Technologies to Expedite Response (RAPTER) project, the scientists
leverage machine learning and AI to search the scientific literature for
knowledge on how to build effective vaccines against new infectious viruses
and bacteria.
Historically, vaccine development is a lengthy and expensive process —
often taking multiple years and millions of dollars to complete. Vaccines are
typically made using one of several different strategies, or “platforms.”
However, different strategies can generate different immune responses. With
RAPTER, researchers figure out which strategy would work best for a specific
virus or bacteria to maximize the value of immune responses from the host.
The tool aims to help produce new vaccines more rapidly and with a reduced
timeline and cost.
Read More https://medicalxpress.com/news/2023-08-vaccine-machine.html
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challenges through innovative science, engineering and technology. Lawrence
Livermore National Laboratory is managed by Lawrence Livermore National
Security, LLC for the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security
Administration.
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