Method and apparatus for producing a magnetically confined hot dense plasma

摘要

1,068,776. Thermonuclear apparatus. UNITED STATES ATOMIC ENERGY COMMISSION. Nov. 9, 1964 [Dec. 9, 1963], No. 45513/64. Heading G6P. In a thermonuclear device, plasma formation is effected by dissociation of injected, highenergy ions of, for example, H 2 SP+/SP, D 2 SP+/SP, T 2 SP+/SP or HDSP+/SP. Upon dissociation the HSP+/SP ions describe circular orbits in the magnetic field which have half the radius of the orbits of the undissociated particles and are trapped and retained within the plasma. An initial plasma is formed, prior to the ion injection, by HeSP6/SP and HeSP4/SP produced by the reaction in a fission reactor. The HeSP4/SP ions are trapped by the electrostatic field formed by relativistic electrons generated by the decay of HeSP6/SP to LiSP6/SP. The electrons are confined in the magnetic field of the device. Hydrogen gas is admitted and the HeSP4/SP ions are purged by a charge exchange reaction, thereby leaving a plasma formed of cold protons, i.e. hydrogen ions and energetic electrons. After magnetic compression of the plasma, the ions to be dissociated are admitted to raise the hot plasma density to fusion point, dissociation being effected by the cold portions. The containing vessel is an evacuated cylinder surrounded by a magnetic mirror forming solenoid.