Orion (laser)

[1] The building houses a large neodymium glass laser system and a target chamber, and it is the biggest experimental facility of high-energy density physics in the UK.

[4] [5] It can replicate the extreme temperatures, pressures and densities found at the heart of a nuclear explosion for the study and understand the physics phenomena that occur in these environments.

[6] Academic research ranges from the conditions relevant to inertial fusion energy, planetary and solar physics, high-energy particle acceleration, black holes and much more.

[5] AWRE came under the Ministry of Defence control in 1973, and merged with two Royal Ordnance Factories to form the Atomic Weapons Establishment in 1987.

[7] The potential of lasers for stockpile stewardship was realised in the 1970s by AWRE scientist Brian Thomas, who postulated their ability to measure less well-understood aspects of radiation hydrodynamics and material properties.

Orion is also part of Laserlab Europe, an initiative to give the European research community access to laser facilities across the continent and engage in collaborative technology development.

[10] As well as gaining access to the Orion laser at AWE, OxCHEDS also benefits from AWE-sponsorship of a number of students and academics within the research group.

[11] A similar arrangement can be found with Imperial College London's Plasma Physics Group for experiments in areas such as radiative astrophysical shock studies.