Inertial electrostatic confinement for fusion applications

Summary form only given, as follows. Inertial electrostatic confinement (IEC) devices have demonstrated significant neutron yields (as high as 2/spl times/10/sup 10/ neutrons/second, steady state) in a compact and inexpensive scale. Recent technological progress in plasma sources, vacuum technology and high voltage materials indicates that an order of magnitude increase in neutron yield may be achievable within a few years.

Inertial electrostatic confinement (IEC) devices have demonstrated significant neutron yields (as high as neutrons/second, steady state) in a compact and inexpensive scale. Recent technological progress in plasma sources, vacuum technology and high voltage materials indicates that an order of magnitude increase in neutron yield may be achievable within a few years. This prospect makes the IEC scheme economically attractive for several near-term applications of fusion. For example, an IEC based intense portable neutron source costing ~ $100k can generate fast neutrons at a rate of neutrons/second for a lifetime over 10,000 hours, much improvement over existing neutron sources using solid targets. In addition, recent theoretical work by Nebel and Barnes [R. A. Nebel, D. C. Barnes, Fusion Technology (1998)] suggested that a tiny oscillating ion cloud in a spherical IEC device may undergo a self-similar collapse in a harmonic oscillator potential formed by a uniform electron background. If driven externally, this ion mode can be used to heat and compress the plasma very efficiently, thus extending the fusion yield by many orders of magnitude, useful for many nearterm fusion applications and critical for fusion power generation. However, there is a major uncertainty in this oscillating plasma scheme related to the dynamics and stability of background electrons in the virtual cathode. We will describe on-going experimental efforts to investigate this concept.