Magnetic Field Effects on Energy Coupling in Scaled Laser-Driven Magnetized Liner Inertial Fusion

In scaled laser-driven magnetized liner inertial fusion (MagLIF), externally applied magnetic fields improve energy coupling by suppressing electron thermal conduction, enhancing Joule heating, and increasing α-particle energy deposition. However, confinement can be significantly degraded by magnetic flux transport, dominated by resistive diffusion, and more critically, the Nernst effect. One-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic simulations demonstrate that increasing the applied field generally enhances neutron yield, but when the Nernst effect is included, the benefit of stronger magnetization diminishes. Stagnation is achieved at 2.72 ns, yielding a peak temperature of 2.17 keV and a neutron production of 1.2×1012. When the Nernst effect is taken into account, the neutron yield decreases by 57.3% compared with the case without it under an initial magnetic field of 10 T. During the implosion, the magnetic field in the fuel gradually diffuses outward into the outer liner. By stagnation, the magnetic flux of fuel has decreased by 33.8%. Based on the characteristics of the Nernst effect, an optimized initial magnetic field of approximately 6 T is identified, which yields an about 2.5 times higher neutron yield than the unmagnetized case. These findings emphasize the key role of magnetic–energy coupling in target performance and provide guidance for the design and scaling of magnetized targets.