ANS is committed to advancing, fostering, and promoting the development and application of nuclear sciences and technologies to benefit society.
Explore the many uses for nuclear science and its impact on energy, the environment, healthcare, food, and more.
Explore membership for yourself or for your organization.
Conference Spotlight
2026 ANS Annual Conference
May 31–June 3, 2026
Denver, CO|Sheraton Denver
Latest Magazine Issues
Feb 2026
Jul 2025
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
March 2026
Nuclear Technology
February 2026
Fusion Science and Technology
January 2026
Latest News
Fusion energy: Progress, partnerships, and the path to deployment
Over the past decade, fusion energy has moved decisively from scientific aspiration toward a credible pathway to a new energy technology. Thanks to long-term federal support, we have significantly advanced our fundamental understanding of plasma physics—the behavior of the superheated gases at the heart of fusion devices. This knowledge will enable the creation and control of fusion fuel under conditions required for future power plants. Our progress is exemplified by breakthroughs at the National Ignition Facility and the Joint European Torus.
Jose M. Martinez-Val, Mireia Piera
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 32 | Number 1 | August 1997 | Pages 131-151
Technical Paper | ICF Target | doi.org/10.13182/FST97-A19885
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A totally new target scheme to exploit fusion reactions is presented. It is based on the propagation of a heat-detonation wave across the fuel that reaches fusion temperatures before expanding. The wave is launched from a small region of the target where fusion ignition temperatures are reached by the crash of cumulation jets. These jets are produced by a couple of hollow-charge conical liners placed close to the target. The collapse of each conical liner creates a dispersive supersonic jet with a specific kinetic energy high enough to ignite the small region of the target where the fusion wave is created. The energy gain can be very high, although it depends on the maximum fusion yield allowable in the reactor chamber.