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Developments in inertial fusion energy and beam fusion at magnetic confinement

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 October 2004

HEINRICH HORA
HEINRICH HORA
Affiliation:
Department of Theoretical Physics, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia
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Abstract

The 70-year anniversary of the first nuclear fusion reaction of hydrogen isotopes by Oliphant, Harteck, and Rutherford is an opportunity to realize how beam fusion is the path for energy production, including both branches, the magnetic confinement fusion and the inertial fusion energy (IFE). It is intriguing that Oliphant's basic concept for igniting controlled fusion reactions by beams has made a comeback even for magnetic confinement plasma, after this beam fusion concept was revealed by the basically nonlinear processes of the well-known alternative of inertial confinement fusion using laser or particle beams. After reviewing the main streams of both directions some results are reported—as an example of possible alternatives—about how experiments with skin layer interaction and avoiding relativistic self-focusing of clean PW–ps laser pulses for IFE may possibly lead to a simplified fusion reactor scheme without the need for special compression of solid deuterium–tritium fuel.

Keywords

Inertial fusion energyLaser ignitionMagnetic confinementNeutral beam fusion
Type
Research Article
Information
Laser and Particle Beams , Volume 22 , Issue 4 , October 2004 , pp. 439 - 449
Copyright
© 2004 Cambridge University Press

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References

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