Lab Replays Neptune’s Diamond Rain to Sharpen Fusion Power Prospects
Lawrence Livermore researchers used laser-driven shocks on tiny diamond samples to reproduce the extreme pressures and temperatures found deep in Neptune and Uranus, melting diamond while recording its atomic structure, temperature, density and reflectivity. The work suggests slower initial shocks could improve fuel compressibility and boost energy yield in inertial confinement fusion, offering new atomic-scale benchmarks for modeling ice-giant atmospheres and guiding fusion experiments.
