A dense plasma focus (DPF) is a type of plasma generating system originally developed as a fusion power device starting in the early 1960s. The system demonstrated scaling laws that suggested it would not be useful in the commercial power role, and since the 1980s it has been used primarily as a fusion teaching system, and as a source of neutrons and X-rays.
The original concept was developed in 1954 by N.V. Filippov, who noticed the effect while working on early pinch machines in the USSR. A major research program on DPF was carried out in the USSR through the late 1950s, and continues to this day. A different version of the same basic concept was independently discovered in the US by J.W. Mather in the early 1960s. This version saw some development in the 1970s, and variations continue to be developed.
The basic design derives from the z-pinch concept. Both the DPF and pinch use large electrical currents run through a gas to cause it to ionize into a plasma and then pinch down on itself to increase the density and temperature of the plasma. The DPF differs largely in form; most devices use two concentric cylinders and form the pinch at the end of the central cylinder. In contrast, z-pinch systems generally use a single cylinder, sometimes a torus, and pinch the plasma into the center.
The plasma focus is similar to the high-intensity plasma gun device (HIPGD) (or just plasma gun), which ejects plasma in the form of a plasmoid, without pinching it. A comprehensive review of the dense plasma focus and its diverse applications has been made by Krishnan in 2012.
Pinch-based devices are the earliest systems to be seriously developed for fusion research, starting with very small machines built in London in 1948. These normally took one of two forms; linear pinch machines are straight tubes with electrodes at both ends to apply the current into the plasma, whereas toroidal pinch machines are donut-shaped machines with large magnets wrapped around them that supply the current via magnetic induction.
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Following an introduction of the main plasma properties, the fundamental concepts of the fluid and kinetic theory of plasmas are introduced. Applications concerning laboratory, space, and astrophysica
The course provides an overview of the technologies that are essential for fusion developments and for industrial plasma applications, highlighting the synergies between the two fields. The aim is to
This course treats the main issues in operation and control of a tokamak. Control-oriented models are derived and controllers are designed using techniques from modern control theory. Operational limi
The polywell is a design for a fusion reactor based on two ideas: heating ions by concentrating (-) charge to accelerate the ions and trapping a diamagnetic plasma inside a cusp field. This kind of plasma trap is based on the idea that a plasma will create its own magnetic field that rejects the outside field. That is not common behavior for a fusing plasma. A similar trapping concept was tested by the Lockheed-Martin high beta fusion reactor team, which tried to hold a plasma in a similar way.
Aneutronic fusion is any form of fusion power in which very little of the energy released is carried by neutrons. While the lowest-threshold nuclear fusion reactions release up to 80% of their energy in the form of neutrons, aneutronic reactions release energy in the form of charged particles, typically protons or alpha particles. Successful aneutronic fusion would greatly reduce problems associated with neutron radiation such as damaging ionizing radiation, neutron activation, reactor maintenance, and requirements for biological shielding, remote handling and safety.
Plasma () is one of four fundamental states of matter, characterized by the presence of a significant portion of charged particles in any combination of ions or electrons. It is the most abundant form of ordinary matter in the universe, being mostly associated with stars, including the Sun. Extending to the rarefied intracluster medium and possibly to intergalactic regions, plasma can be artificially generated by heating a neutral gas or subjecting it to a strong electromagnetic field.
Explores resonant three wave coupling, focusing on Stimulated Raman Scattering in plasma and the development of parametric instabilities affecting laser light.
Learn the basics of plasma, one of the fundamental states of matter, and the different types of models used to describe it, including fluid and kinetic.
Learn the basics of plasma, one of the fundamental states of matter, and the different types of models used to describe it, including fluid and kinetic.
Simulations of plasma turbulence in a linear plasma device configuration are presented. These simulations are based on a simplified version of the gyrokinetic (GK) model proposed by Frei et al. [J. Plasma Phys. 86, 905860205 (2020)], where the full-F distr ...
Melville2024
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In magnetic fusion devices, error field (EF) sources, spurious magnetic field perturbations, need to be identified and corrected for safe and stable (disruption-free) tokamak operation. Within Work Package Tokamak Exploitation RT04, a series of studies hav ...
Using the GKEngine code which simulates an electrostatic plasma with adiabatic electron response under a sheared-slab geometry, an attempt at developing a hybrid approach between the delta-f and full-f schemes to describe plasma profiles exhibiting high fl ...