Fusion neutron yield from a laser-irradiated heavy-water spray
- Max-Born-Institut, Max-Born-Strasse 2a, D-12489 Berlin (Germany)
The fusion neutron yield from a laser-irradiated heavy-water (D{sub 2}O) spray target was studied. Heavy-water droplets of about 150 nm diameter in the spray were exposed to 35 fs laser pulses at an intensity of 1x10{sup 19} W/cm{sup 2}. Due to the 10-50 times bigger size of the spray droplets compared to usual cluster sizes, deuterons are accelerated to considerably higher kinetic energies of up to 1 MeV. Neutrons are generated by the deuterons escaping from the plasma and initiating a fusion reaction within the surrounding cold plume of the spray jet. For each 0.6 J of laser pulse energy, 6x10{sup 3} neutrons are produced by about 10{sup 11} accelerated deuterons. This corresponds to a D(d,n) reaction probability of about 6x10{sup -8}. Compared to cluster targets, the reaction probability in the spray target is found to be two orders of magnitude larger. This finding apparently is due to both the considerably higher deuteron energies and the larger effective target thickness in the spray target. The measured neutron yield per accelerated deuteron [i.e., the D(d,n) reaction probability], is employed to compare and extrapolate the neutron emission characteristics from different target arrangements.
- OSTI ID:
- 20662073
- Journal Information:
- Physics of Plasmas, Vol. 12, Issue 1; Other Information: DOI: 10.1063/1.1815001; (c) 2005 American Institute of Physics; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 1070-664X
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Neutron production from ultrashort pulse lasers using linear and circular polarization
Nuclear Fusion In Gases Of Deuterium Clusters And Hot Electron Generation In Droplet Sprays Under Irradiation With An Intense Femtosecond Laser