Explosive-Driven Hemispherical Implosions for Generating Fusion Plasmas

Abstract : The UTIAS explosive-driven-implosion facility was used to produce stable, centered and focused hemispherical implosions to generate neutrons from D-D reactions. A high resolution scintillator-detection system measured the neutrons and gamma-rays resulting from the fusion of deuterium. Several approaches were used to initiate fusion in deuterium. The simpliest and most direct proved to be in predetonated stoichiometric mixture of deuterium-oxygen. The other successful method was miniature Voitenko-type compressor where a plane diaphragm was driven by the implosion wave into a secondary small spherical cavity that contained pure deuterium gas at one atmosphere. A great deal of work still remains in order to measure accurately the neutron flux and its velocity distribution as well as the precise interactions of the neutrons with the steel chamber which produced the gamma-rays. Nevertheless, this is the only known work where fusion neutrons were produced by chemical energy only in a direct and indirect manner.