Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Contracting & Materiel Management Department, L-650, P. O. Box 5012, Livermore, CA 94551

A -- SEMICONDUCTOR LASER DIODE REQUIREMENTS FOR NIF DUE 040795 POC Greg Rogowski, Principal Buyer, (510) 422-8148 The University of California, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, seeks sources for multi-kilowatt semiconductor laser diode arrays for the pumping of a regenerative amplifier. The Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), operated by the University of California under contract with the U. S. Department of Energy, is seeking information about companies which have the capabilities to provide components and sub-assemblies for the National Ignition Facility (NIF) Optical Pulse Generation (OPG) system. NIF will be a major project acquisition (proposed budget $1.1 B) designed to achieve thermonuclear ignition by laser driven Inertial Confinement Fusion. Facility construction is scheduled to start in October 1996 and to be completed in the year 2002. The NIF is to generate nearly 2 megajoules of optical energy at the third harmonic of Neodymium doped glass (351 nanometers) and deliver this energy in a few nanoseconds to a fusion target approximately 1 mm in diameter. An array of 192 individual laser beams (beamlets) are to be generated simultaneously. The role of the OPG is to create 192 initial pulses, each having about 10 joules of energy, in a precisely formatted (both spatially and temporally) beam. Subsequent amplification by 192 solid state laser amplifiers generates the required system energy. One of the components in each of the 192 beam lines will be a semiconductor laser diode-pumped regenerative amplifier. Each of these regenerative amplifiers is presently envisioned as containing two diode-pumped Nd:Glass laser rods. The pump architecture used for exciting these rods utilizes a diode end-pumped geometry in which extended laser diode array apertures formed from multiple laser diode bars in a rack and stack configuration are radiance (microlens) conditioned and then have their output radiation delivered to the end of the laser rod. The peak diode power required to excite each of the 384 Nd:Glass laser rods is expected to be between 3.5 kW and 5 kW with a temporal format of 350 to 450 microsec pulse duration and a 1 Hz PRF. The output wavelength of the laser diode arrays is required to be 801 nm #177#3 nm operating in ambient room air. Cooling of the arrays should only require forced air and some type of finned heat sink structure. The 384 required 3.5 kW to 5 kW diode arrays should be configured to have apertures measuring no more than 4 cm by 1 cm and have their radiation delivered into a region measuring no more than 50 mRad full angle in the 4 cm aperture dimension by 200 mRad full angle in the 1 cm aperture dimension. The purpose of this announcement is to obtain information on potential industrial partners and participants who are interested in, and capable of, supplying the required laser diode arrays for this program. It is anticipated that the procurement of the laser diode arrays will begin in FY#030#98. For further information contact Ray Beach at (510) 423-8986, or send email to: beach2@llnl.gov. Interested firms should respond with a description of qualifications with respect to the foregoing or related fields. The small business size standard applicable to the proposed acquisition is 500 employees. Firms qualifying as a small business with respect to this standard should so state. Responses are required on or before April 07, 1995. Firms responding to this announcement which fail to provide the required information will not be considered for inclusion into any resulting source list. Facsimile and telephone responses will not be accepted. This notice is to assist the University in determining the potential for competition; no solicitation is currently available. (0061)

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