Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) and the Extreme Light Infrastructure (ELI) European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) that lays the foundation for the exchange of staff, internship opportunities for students and postdocs, and the fostering of a culture of knowledge-sharing and intellectual collaboration. The MOU expands an existing strategic collaboration between the parties, with a focus on areas such as ultrabright high-repetition-rate sources for enhanced radiography, fusion, and plasma physics research, according to James McCarrick, LLNL program director for High Energy Density and Photon Systems. “This includes developing technologies with multiple applications such as high-repetition-rate target systems and diagnostics that can survive sustained operation close to one of the highest intensity and highest average power lasers in the world,” he McCarrick said. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) and Extreme Light Infrastructure (ELI) began their partnership with the L3 HAPLS (High-Repetition-Rate Advanced Petawatt Laser System) laser system, which LLNL built and delivered, and ELI now operates. Courtesy of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. ELI and LLNL have a long-standing partnership. In 2013, LLNL built and subsequently delivered the L3 HAPLS (High-Repetition-Rate Advanced Petawatt Laser System) to the ELI Beamlines Facility near Prague, Czech Republic. L3 HAPLS is designed to deliver petawatt-class pulses with energy of at least 30 J and durations below 30 fs, at a 10-Hz repetition rate. The system is already extensively used, capitalizing on its reliability and high repetition rate, while a clear plan is in place to continue ramping up its performance toward the full technical design parameters. These capabilities are essential for driving secondary sources like electrons, ions and x-rays, and for advancing the understanding of laser-plasma interactions. The L3 HAPLS is a central feature of ELI's scientific offerings and provides a powerful tool for exploring high-intensity laser experiments with relevant applications to fields including materials science, medical therapy and non-destructive analysis. It is also particularly well suited for exploratory research in laser-driven fusion. Last year, LLNL researchers performed an experiment in cooperation with ELI staff that integrated machine learning and optimization technologies to enhance the performance of the L3 system. This effectively boosted precision and efficiency, paving the way for even greater advancements in high-power laser experiments and research. The success of this experiment opens new avenues in laser-plasma interaction physics, according to officials.