Abstract: The inertial confinement is alternative to magnetic confinement approach to harnessing of thermonuclear fusion reactions for sustainable energy production. It considers a compression and heating of the deuterium-tritium mixture with the help of high-power, high energy lasers and fusion energy release in 100 ps time. Two laser systems capable to deliver an energy more than one MJ and release power more than 400 TW are the National Ignition Facility in the USA and the Laser Mega Joule in France. The ignition of controlled thermonuclear reactions is planned at the NIF within next two years. The LMJ facility will be operational in next 5 years.

 In my talk I will present the basic principles of the IFE and the works that we are doing in France and in our laboratory in particular. Two major pathways are persuaded: the fast ignition of a cone-in-shell fuel assembly target with electrons or ions and the shock ignition of a spherically compressed fuel. The physics of laser plasma coupling will be discussed as well as the conditions needed for ignition. Along with the IFE, the laser matter interaction finds many other applications, which I will discuss briefly in the end of my talk.