Particle Acceleration and Advanced Light Sources
Accelerating particles in a fraction of the space today’s machines require.
NSF OPAL
Next-Generation Experimental User Facility
Groundbreaking Science | Workforce Development | Transformational Technology
The NSF OPAL facility is envisioned to serve as a learning environment and hub for diverse scientific networks, offering opportunities for fundamental research, innovation, and societal benefit. Funding from the U.S. National Science Foundation is supporting the design of two 25-petawatt lasers using optical parametric chirped-pulse amplification, as well as associated experimental and diagnostics systems.
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High-Field Physics and Quantum Electrodynamics
Testing what happens when light is intense enough to make matter from empty space.
Laboratory Astrophysics and Planetary Physics
Recreating the conditions inside planets and stars.
Laser-Driven Nuclear Physics
Using lasers to drive nuclear reactions and trace how the elements formed.
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PIF26 Brings the Strong-Field QED Community to URochester
July 29, 2026
The University of Rochester welcomed the international strong-field physics community to campus for Physics in Intense Fields 2026 (PIF26), the latest edition of a conference series that traces back to…
Where Laser Science Goes Next
June 11, 2026
The technology at the heart of NSF OPAL has its roots in a discovery made decades ago at the Laboratory for Laser Energetics (LLE). Chirped-pulse amplification — the technique that…
NSF-AFOSR Next-Generation Optical Materials and Components for High-Power Lasers Report
March 18, 2026
The Next-Generation Optical Materials and Components for High-Power Lasers Workshop was convened to address a critical bottleneck in laser technology. This brief report outlines the resulting strategy, which focuses on…
Inside the NSF OPAL Target Chamber
Rotate, zoom, and explore the chamber layout, beam paths, and diagnostic ports.
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This material is based upon work supported by the U.S. National Science Foundation Mid-scale Research Infrastructure Program under Award No. PHY-2329970. Any opinions, findings and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. National Science Foundation.