News

Designing for Ignition: Precise changes yield historic results

Second in a series of articles describing the elements of the National Ignition Facility’s fusion breakthrough. The National Ignition Facility (NIF) is the world’s biggest laser — three footballs fields could fit inside — but it’s what happened inside a capsule the size of a peppercorn that made scientific history on Dec. 5, 2022. The NIF experiment that produced fusion ignition in a...

LLNL researchers develop method for real-time defect detection in metal 3D-printed parts

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) engineers and scientists have developed a method for detecting and predicting strut defects in 3D-printed metal lattice structures during a print through a combination of monitoring, imaging techniques and multi-physics simulations. The high-strength and low-density properties of metallic lattices have found applications in many fields. During...

Illuminating the science of black holes and gamma-ray bursts using high-power lasers

High-power lasers now create record-high numbers of electron-positron pairs, opening exciting opportunities to study extreme astrophysical processes, such as black holes and gamma-ray bursts. Positrons, or "anti-electrons," are anti-particles with the same mass as an electron but with opposite charge. The generation of energetic electron-positron pairs is common in extreme astrophysical...

Firefighters free snow-stranded motorists

More than 100 motorists who were stranded on a snow-laden road in the Altamont Pass early Friday morning received a helping hand from firefighters housed at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Six firefighters aboard two engines rolled out of the Alameda County Fire Department (ACFD) Station 20 at about 4:50 a.m. to respond to a call from a motorist whose car couldn’t get traction...

LLNL chemists double down with breakthrough method to study radioactive materials

Studying radioactive materials is notoriously difficult due to their radiation-induced toxicity and risk of contamination when handling. The cost of the radioactive isotopes used in research also is a major barrier, with some costing more than $10,000 per microgram. Certain radioisotopes also cannot be produced in sufficient quantity so it is simply impossible for researchers to study them...

Small business success story: Contractor GCJ graduates from the LLNS Mentor/Protégé Program

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) has more than $1 billion in procurement needs each year, and employees may be surprised to hear that small businesses make up nearly 40% of that spending. Under guidance from the National Nuclear Security Administration, LLNL’s Small Business Program Office develops annual socioeconomic goals and takes necessary measures to meet them. For...

Longtime employee Linda Thorne loves helping others

If you have ever called the O&B finance help desk, you have probably talked to Linda Thorne. You probably noticed her cheerful greeting, “Finance helpdesk, Linda speaking…”,  (see the video clip) but didn’t realize that friendly voice belongs to one of the Lab’s longest tenured workers and a woman who started her career elbow-deep in the guts of the massive computers of the day. Known by her...

Star Power: Blazing the path to fusion ignition

First in a series of articles describing the elements of the National Ignition Facility’s fusion breakthrough. It was the middle of the night on Dec. 5, 2022, and anticipation was building among the handful of researchers and technicians in the National Ignition Facility (NIF) control room. A set of pre-shot simulations had predicted a slightly better than 50-50 chance that the impending...

A day in the life: LLNL’s construction managers

One of 68 active construction sites at LLNL, Bldg. 310 is looking pretty sharp. “This is where the pool was, and the locker rooms were over there,” said LLNL construction manager Nick Gomes, with a sweeping gesture across a new parking lot punctuated with just-planted landscaping over to a diminutive older building to the left that now houses a yoga studio. “It was huge.” The Navy...

‘Science on Saturday’ lecture to showcase 3D printing technologies and applications

Who: Stan Hitomi, retired educator and district administrator for the San Ramon Valley Unified School District, will present “3D Printing: From Imagination to Realization” joined by a host of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) scientists, including: Eric Duoss, Julie Mancini, Monica Moya, Dominique Porcincula, William Smith, Chris Spadaccini and Becca Walton. The event is the final...

Collapsing bubbles show new ejecta production mechanism can occur under multiple-shock conditions

New research led by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) provides a better understanding of ejecta production, which has been the subject of broad interest for more than 60 years throughout the scientific community. Ejecta are particles of material forced out or ejected from an area. The phenomena are observed across many multi-disciplinary applications, including volcanic...

LLNL celebrates National Engineering Week/Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) is celebrating National Engineers Week (Feb. 19-Feb. 25) and Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day (Feb. 23) by highlighting just a few of the more than 2,500 employees that make up the Lab’s Engineering Directorate. Representing a cross-section of the broad scope of focus areas and disciplines comprising the directorate, Engineering...

All eyes on Lauren Casonhua

Lauren Casonhua’s journey to the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) begins with a love of stories. Growing up in Texas, she remembers returning home after each library visit with a stack of fiction books under her arm. “There’s something so incredible about immersing yourself in a different world and really seeing it through the protagonist’s eyes,” she said. “I’ve always...

LLNL biomedical licensee collaborating with two drug companies to advance treatments for autoimmune diseases

People afflicted with autoimmune diseases may someday receive help through treatments now under development by a Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) licensee and its’ collaborations with two major pharmaceutical companies.          In late 2017, LLNL licensed a biomedical technology called nanolipoprotein particles (NLPs), which can deliver vaccines and drugs inside the cells in...

‘Science on Saturday’ lecture to discuss the capabilities and uses of supercomputing resources

Who: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) scientist Jane Herriman will be joined by Tracy High School biology teacher Erin McKay to present “Supersizing Computing: 70 Years of HPC.” The event is the third lecture in the 2023 series of Science on Saturdays lectures showcasing “70 Years of Science” at the Laboratory. What: This presentation will discuss how the ever...

LLNL engineers make improvements to Lab-developed design optimization code

Lawrence Livermore National Laboraotry (LLNL) engineers have taken major strides towards closing the gap between the Lab’s manufacturing and design capabilities. The field of additive manufacturing, or 3D printing, has enabled the manufacturing of a variety of heretofore impossible designs — but some of this potential is left on the table because designers have had trouble keeping up with...

NIF’s advances make Summer Scholar Program a coveted internship

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s (LLNL) National Ignition Facility’s (NIF) recent scientific advances, including the achievement of fusion ignition in December, have increased interest among aspiring young scientists for the NIF&PS Summer Scholar Program. “That’s kind of the cool thing about this past year,” said Patrick Poole, the program director. “We had so many excited students...

‘Science on Saturday’ lecture to discuss microalgae’s role in carbon cycling and sustainable biofuels

Who: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) scientists Xavier Mayali and Ty Samo will be joined by Tracy High School biology teacher Erin McKay to present “Small Algae, Big World: The Impact of Microalgae on Global Carbon Cycling and Sustainable Biofuels.” The event is the second lecture in the 2023 series of Science on Saturdays lectures showcasing “70 Years of Science” at the...

Five Lab teams recognized with Secretary’s Honor Achievement Awards

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) employees, participating in five project teams, recently earned Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary’s Honor Achievement Awards. Representing some of the highest internal, non-monetary recognition that DOE employees and contractors can receive, the Secretary’s Honor Awards recognize DOE employees and contractors for their service and...

All eyes on Rochelle Barker

Rochelle Barker grew up in Modesto, California, where she and her brother were raised by their grandmother. Two of the most important values that Barker learned from her grandmother were to work hard and to take care of those around you. “Grandma was a career waitress in a little truck shop on Interstate 5,” she said. “When I was 13, she paid me $20 a night to clear tables and help around...