INFUSE project will experimentally validate liquid fuel redistribution and vapor-pressure behavior in wetted foam targets, advancing a potential pathway to lower-tritium-inventory fusion power plants
DENVER, CO — November 9, 2026 — Xcimer Energy and SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory have been selected for an award through the U.S. Department of Energy’s Innovation Network for Fusion Energy (INFUSE) program to investigate liquid fuel redistribution and vapor-pressure evolution in wetted foam targets.
Wetted foam targets could enable rapid fuel filling for inertial confinement fusion, potentially reducing the tritium inventory required for a commercial fusion power plant. The joint project will test and validate models of liquid fuel behavior in these targets, combining Xcimer’s expertise in laser-driven fusion with SLAC’s experimental capabilities.
Understanding how liquid fuel redistributes and how vapor pressure evolves within wetted foam targets is essential to setting its thermal requirements. Temperature changes reduce the liquid’s density, while increasing vapor pressure buildup which can impede capsule compression. During injection, expansion or distortion of the liquid layer could also threaten the layer’s integrity. Measurements of liquid expansion and vapor pressure buildup will validate models of these temperature and time-dependent effects, helping to establish operating limits that preserve the fuel layer and support compression.
“A fusion power plant requires targets that perform reliably at high repetition rates. To design targets that meet that requirement, we need to predict how the liquid fuel expands, loses density, and develops vapor pressure as it warms up. By leveraging Xcimer’s target design expertise with SLAC’s experimental capabilities, we can measure this behavior and validate the models that guide practical, repeatable target designs,” said Alison Christopherson, fusion program lead for implosions at Xcimer Energy.
The INFUSE program connects private fusion companies with expertise and capabilities at national laboratories and universities to address technical challenges facing the development of commercial fusion energy. The program supports collaborative research that can accelerate progress across the fusion industry.
Xcimer is developing high-energy, high-repetition-rate excimer laser technology for inertial confinement fusion. Its laser architecture is designed to reduce the cost of the laser systems required for commercial fusion power plants.
About Xcimer Energy
Xcimer Energy is developing the world’s most powerful lasers for commercial fusion energy and national security. Headquartered in Denver, Colorado, Xcimer has raised about $200 million from leading investors including Hedosophia, Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Lowercarbon Capital, Emerson Collective, Prelude Ventures and others. The company is a participant in the U.S. Department of Energy’s Milestone-Based Fusion Development Program.
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