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Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Zap Energy hits 37-million-degree electron temperatures in compact fusion device
Zap Energy announced April 23 that it has reached 1-3 keV plasma electron temperatures—roughly the equivalent of 11 to 37 million degrees Celsius—using its sheared-flow-stabilized Z-pinch approach to fusion. Reaching temperatures above that of the sun’s core (which is 10 million degrees Celsius temperature) is just one hurdle required before any fusion confinement concept can realistically pursue net gain and fusion energy.
Jeffrey A. Koch, Thomas P. Bernat, Gilbert W. Collins, Bruce A. Hammel, Andrew J. MacKinnon, Charles H. Still, James D. Sater, Donald N. Bittner
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 43 | Number 1 | January 2003 | Pages 55-66
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/FST03-A249
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Targets for future laser-fusion ignition experiments will consist of a frozen deuterium-tritium ice layer adhering to the inner surface of a spherical shell, and the specifications for the inner surface quality of this ice layer are extremely demanding. We have developed a numerical raytrace model in order to validate backlit optical shadowgraphy as an ice-surface diagnostic, and we have used the code to simulate shadowgraph data obtained from mathematical ice layers having known modal imperfections. We find that backlit optical shadowgraphy is a valid diagnostic of the mode spectrum of ice-surface imperfections for mode numbers as high as 80 provided the experimental data are analyzed appropriately. We also describe alternative measurement techniques, which may be more sensitive than conventional backlit shadowgraphy.