
Plasma optic combines lasers into superbeam - pwg
https://phys.org/news/2017-10-plasma-optic-combines-lasers-superbeam.html
======
qarioz
9 beams combined into a single beam with energy 4 times of a single beam.

------
beautifulfreak
This should be good for their fusion efforts.
[https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/high-powered-
lase...](https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/high-powered-lasers-
deliver-fusion-energy-breakthrough/)

------
WillReplyfFood
"Plasma is generally bad for lasers"

The plasma is the best part. With plasma you can print current carrying
channels into mid-air, with plasma you can transfer electric charges on them.
With plasma your mid-air printed coil can put a force on things.

~~~
dcow
They go on to mention how it's beneficial in this case too...

------
ZenoArrow
Could be useful for nuclear fusion:

[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inertial_confinement_fusion](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inertial_confinement_fusion)

~~~
unwind
Well, the National Ignition Facility is a fusion research lab, so that is kind
of implied.

See
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Ignition_Facility](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Ignition_Facility)
for more.

~~~
ZenoArrow
I'm aware of what the NIF is, I skim read the article so I didn't pick up that
they were behind it.

------
jasmcole
These results come from the National Ignition Facility, the world's biggest
ICF experiment.

