49 / 2020-02-01 05:57:22

A high-current stream of energetic alpha-particles from laser-driven proton-boron nuclear fusion

nuclear fusion,laser plasma interaction,particle beams

全体主题 > 激光和粒子束聚变

The nuclear reaction known as proton-boron fusion has been triggered by a sub-nanosecond laser system focused onto a thick boron nitride target at modest laser intensity (~10^16 W/cm2), resulting in a record yield of generated alpha-particles (around 10^11 per pulse). The accelerated alpha-particle stream shows unique features in terms of kinetic energy (up to 10 MeV), pulse duration (~10 ns) and peak current (~2 A) at 1 m from the source, promising for potential applications of such neutron-less nuclear fusion reaction.
A beam-driven fusion scheme was used to explain the total amount of α particles generated in the nuclear reaction. In this model, protons accelerated inside the plasma, moving forward into the bulk of the target, can interact with 11B atoms, thus efficiently triggering fusion reactions. An overview of literature results obtained with different laser parameters, experimental setups and target compositions will also be discussed.