Published online by Cambridge University Press: 18 January 2002
We report on the observation of neutrons resulting from a thermonuclear reaction D + D = 3He(0.82 MeV) + n(2.45 MeV), taking place in plasma created on the surface of a modified solid-state target. The plasma was produced by a 200-fs laser pulse with intensity in excess of 1016 W/cm2 and energy of only 0.3 mJ.