Ion loss by collisional upscattering

Technical Report · Sun Jan 20 04:00:00 EST 1991

OSTI ID:6743274

Rosenberg, M; Krall, N A

In at least one idealized version of the Polywell (tm)/SCIF (Spherically Convergent Ion Focus) fusion scheme, the ions are reinjected at a point xo such that the magnetic field is sufficiently reduced from its maximum value that the ion orbits are nearly straight lines as they converge to the center of the device. Typically, this location will have a B-field in the range of 100 Gauss, compared to a B max of several kG. This convergence in a strong potential produces a highly non-Maxwellian ion distribution, with a small dense core of nearly monoenergetic ions surrounded by a large mantle of less dense plasma made up of ions whose velocity is primarily radial. There are two very distinct effects that collisions have on ion confinement. Firstly, as the ions pass through the geometric center of the device, collisional processes will alter their velocity distribution from nearly monoenergetic to Maxwellian.

• Research Organization: Energy/Matter Conversion Corp., Manassas, VA (United States)
• OSTI ID: 6743274
• Report Number(s): AD-A-257688/2/XAB; CNN: MDA972-90-C-0006
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

664300* -- Atomic & Molecular Physics-- Collision Phenomena-- (1992-)
74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS
ANGULAR MOMENTUM
BOLTZMANN STATISTICS
CHARGED PARTICLES
CHEMICAL ANALYSIS
COLLISIONS
COMPUTER CALCULATIONS
CONFINEMENT
DATA-FLOW PROCESSING
DIFFERENTIAL EQUATIONS
EQUATIONS
ICF DEVICES
ION BEAM FUSION REACTORS
ION COLLISIONS
ION SCATTERING ANALYSIS
ION-ION COLLISIONS
IONS
MAGNETIC CONFINEMENT
MAGNETIC FIELDS
MAXWELL EQUATIONS
NONDESTRUCTIVE ANALYSIS
PARTIAL DIFFERENTIAL EQUATIONS
PLASMA CONFINEMENT
PROGRAMMING
THERMONUCLEAR DEVICES
THERMONUCLEAR REACTORS