About
Dr. Alison Christopherson is the Head of Target Design at Xcimer Energy Corporation, a pioneering laser inertial confinement fusion (ICF) company developing a high-energy, gas-laser-driven approach to achieve commercial fusion power with a path to wall-plug breakeven. In this role, she leads the target and ignition physics program, defining the physics basis, system requirements, target designs, and risk retirement strategy for Xcimer's Fusion Pilot Plant, including work on scaling to megajoule-class drivers, filamentation mitigation, beam profile optimization, and experimental campaigns such as recent shots at the University of Rochester's Laboratory for Laser Energetics (LLE). Prior to Xcimer, Dr. Christopherson was a physicist at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), contributing to inertial confinement fusion research at the National Ignition Facility (NIF), where she advanced high-gain target designs, alpha heating theories, and understanding of hot-spot asymmetries and ion-temperature measurements in ICF experiments. Her doctoral research, conducted at the University of Rochester's Laboratory for Laser Energetics (LLE), earned her the 2022 Marshall N. Rosenbluth Outstanding Doctoral Thesis Award from the American Physical Society (APS) for impactful theories on fusion alpha heating and related ICF phenomena. She holds a Ph.D. in a relevant field (likely mechanical engineering or plasma physics) from the University of Rochester, building on expertise that spans plasma physics, nuclear fusion, and scaling complex systems from fields like Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) lithography and advanced materials R&D. An accomplished researcher with publications in high-impact journals and presentations at major conferences (including APS Division of Plasma Physics and SPIE Photonics West), Dr. Christopherson has been recognized for her contributions to both fundamental ICF science and practical pathways to fusion energy commercialization. Her leadership at Xcimer bridges cutting-edge plasma physics with engineering innovation to accelerate the realization of reliable, high-yield laser-driven fusion for sustainable energy.
