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Theta Pinch
Theta-pinch, or θ-pinch, is a type of fusion power reactor design. The name refers to the configuration of magnetic fields used to confine the plasma fuel in the reactor, arranged to run around a cylinder in the direction normally denoted as theta in polar coordinate diagrams. The name was chosen to differentiate it from machines based on the pinch effect that arranged their fields running down the centre of the cylinder; these became known as z-pinch machines, referring to the Z-axis in cartesian coordinates. Theta-pinch was developed primarily in the United States, mostly at the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) in a series of machines known as Scylla. In 1958, Scylla I was the first machine to clearly demonstrate thermonuclear fusion reactions of deuterium in a controlled manner. It became one of the major lines of fusion research during the 1960s. General Electric and the Naval Research Laboratory also experimented with the concept, and later, many international labs ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scylla I In 1958
In Greek mythology, Scylla), is obsolete. ( ; grc-gre, Σκύλλα, Skúlla, ) is a legendary monster who lives on one side of a narrow channel of water, opposite her counterpart Charybdis. The two sides of the strait are within an arrow's range of each other—so close that sailors attempting to avoid Charybdis would pass dangerously close to Scylla and vice versa. Scylla is first attested in Homer's ''Odyssey'', where Odysseus and his crew encounter her and Charybdis on their travels. Later myth provides an origin story as a beautiful nymph who gets turned into a monster. Book Three of Virgil's ''Aeneid'' associates the strait where Scylla dwells with the Strait of Messina between Calabria, a region of Southern Italy, and Sicily. The coastal town of Scilla in Calabria takes its name from the mythological figure of Scylla and it is said to be the home of the nymph. The idiom " between Scylla and Charybdis" has come to mean being forced to choose between two similarly dange ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nuclear Fusion
Nuclear fusion is a reaction in which two or more atomic nuclei are combined to form one or more different atomic nuclei and subatomic particles ( neutrons or protons). The difference in mass between the reactants and products is manifested as either the release or absorption of energy. This difference in mass arises due to the difference in nuclear binding energy between the atomic nuclei before and after the reaction. Nuclear fusion is the process that powers active or main-sequence stars and other high-magnitude stars, where large amounts of energy are released. A nuclear fusion process that produces atomic nuclei lighter than iron-56 or nickel-62 will generally release energy. These elements have a relatively small mass and a relatively large binding energy per nucleon. Fusion of nuclei lighter than these releases energy (an exothermic process), while the fusion of heavier nuclei results in energy retained by the product nucleons, and the resulting reaction is endo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Quantum Tunnelling
Quantum tunnelling, also known as tunneling ( US) is a quantum mechanical phenomenon whereby a wavefunction can propagate through a potential barrier. The transmission through the barrier can be finite and depends exponentially on the barrier height and barrier width. The wavefunction may disappear on one side and reappear on the other side. The wavefunction and its first derivative are continuous. In steady-state, the probability flux in the forward direction is spatially uniform. No particle or wave is lost. Tunneling occurs with barriers of thickness around 1–3 nm and smaller. Some authors also identify the mere penetration of the wavefunction into the barrier, without transmission on the other side as a tunneling effect. Quantum tunneling is not predicted by the laws of classical mechanics where surmounting a potential barrier requires sufficient kinetic energy. Quantum tunneling plays an essential role in physical phenomena such as nuclear fusion and alpha radioact ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
