Fig. 1. Schematic of the indirect-drive inertial confinement approach to fusion.

Centre, A typical indirect-drive target configuration with key engineering elements labelled. Laser beams (blue) enter the hohlraum through laser entrance holes at various angles. Top left, A schematic pie diagram showing the radial distribution and dimensions of materials in diamond (high-density carbon, HDC) ablator implosions. Bottom left, The temporal laser power pulse-shape (blue) and associated hohlraum radiation temperature (green). Right, At the centre of the hohlraum, the capsule is bathed in X-rays, which ablate the outer surface of the capsule. The pressure generated drives the capsule inward upon itself (an implosion) which compresses and heats the fusion fuel during the implosion process.