Non-thermal laser driven plasma-blocks for proton boron avalanche fusion as direct drive option

Fusion energy from protons reacting with 11B, HB11, is extremely difficult or impossible when using thermal ignition by laser irradiation. This changes radically when using picosecond laser pulses with powers above petawatts dominated by nonlinear force driven ultrahigh acceleration of plasma blocks...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Heinrich Hora, Shalom Eliezer, Noaz Nissim, Paraskevas Lalousis
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: AIP Publishing LLC 2017-07-01
Series:Matter and Radiation at Extremes
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.mre.2017.05.001
Description
Summary:Fusion energy from protons reacting with 11B, HB11, is extremely difficult or impossible when using thermal ignition by laser irradiation. This changes radically when using picosecond laser pulses with powers above petawatts dominated by nonlinear force driven ultrahigh acceleration of plasma blocks for a non-thermal initiation of igniting solid density HB11 fuel. For a cylindrical trapping of the reaction, laser produced ultrahigh magnetic fields above kiloTesla, have to be combined. The experimentally confirmed highly increased HB11 fusion gains due to avalanche reaction may lead to a scheme of an environmentally clean and economic power reactor.
ISSN:2468-080X