In December 2022, a team at Lawrence Livermore National Lab’s National Ignition Facility (NIF) conducted the first controlled fusion experiment in history to reach scientific energy breakeven, producing more energy from fusion than the laser energy used to drive it. In that experiment, where 2.05 MJ of laser energy was delivered to the target, a fusion energy output of 3.15 MJ was achieved, a gain of 1.5. This talk will review the NIF – the world’s largest, most energetic laser, the latest experimental results, the scientific and technological advancements that made this breakthrough possible, and the implications for future research, particularly in how the achievement of ignition now lays the groundwork to explore laser inertial fusion as a path for clean energy and energy security.
