Correcting raw diagnostic data for oscilloscope recording system distortions at the National Ignition Facility

The National Ignition Facility (NIF) is now producing experimental results for the study of inertial confinement fusion (ICF). These results are captured by complex diagnostic systems and are key to achieving NIF's goal to demonstrate thermonuclear burn of deuterium and tritium fuel in a laboratory setting. High bandwidth gamma-ray fusion-burn measurements and soft X-ray indirect and direct drive energetic measurements are both captured with oscilloscope recording systems that distort or modulate the raw data. The Shot Data Analysis team has developed signal processing corrections for these oscilloscope recording systems through an automated engine. Once these corrections are applied, accurate fundamental quantities can be discerned.

► High-speed shot data from NIF oscilloscope waveforms are often distorted.
► We describe specialized corrections for two example NIF diagnostic systems.
► For Dante, non-uniform time-base corrections for the scopes are applied.
► Mach–Zehnder optical demodulation and “stitching” are applied to GRH.
► A multi-node analysis engine performs scope corrections automatically.