Laser Megajoule facility status report

The Laser MegaJoule, a 176-beam laser facility developed by CEA, is located near Bordeaux. It is part of the French Simulation Program, which combines improvement of theoretical models used in various domains of physics and high performance numerical simulation. It is designed to deliver about 1.4 MJ of energy on targets, for high energy density physics experiments, including fusion experiments. The LMJ technological choices were validated on the LIL, a scale-1 prototype composed of 1 bundle of 4-beams. The first bundle of 8-beams was commissioned in October 2014 with the implementation of the first experiment on the LMJ facility. The operational capabilities are increasing gradually every year until the full completion by 2026. By the end of 2025, 22 bundles of 8-beams will be assembled (full scale) and 19 bundles are expected to be fully operational. As the assembly of the laser bundles is coming to an end and before to be in full operation, we propose to make a status report on the LMJ/PETAL installation. We will present the major software developments done for theses 2 past years, the latest experimental results and the new challenges to keep this facility at its best operating level. Key words: Laser facility, LMJ, PETAL, Control System Glossary: LMJ: Laser MegaJoule CEA: Commissariat à l’Energie Atomique et aux Energies Alternatives LIL : Ligne d’Intégration Laser