Re: Proton-Proton Fusion- the easy way

"Mark Fergerson" <nunya@xxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:nsCAe.30895$ro.27238@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Logan Kearsley wrote:
> >
> > "Mark Fergerson" <nunya@xxxxxxxx> wrote in message
> > news:w5xAe.30873$ro.6822@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> >
> >>Logan Kearsley wrote:
>
> <snip browser clash about neutron sources>
>
> >> Know about so-called "atom lasers"? Could a "neutron laser" be
> >>what you want? It'd require a BEC made of something that has plenty
> >>of neutrons to give up (even-spin transuranic isotope), and a "seed
> >>source" of neutrons at the right energy to get the BEC to give its
> >>up all at once. Kinda handwavy (OK, _real_ handwavy), but might work.
>
> > Yup. Seems like it ought to work, but what would be the advantage over
any
> > other neutron source?
>
> You'd get intense coherent, collimated monoenergetic neutron
> bursts for pulsed fusion or, (assuming it's even possible) run the
> BEC through a continuous flow apparatus like a CW gas laser for
> continuous fusion. AFAIK all other neutron sources are pretty much
> incoherent, uncollimated, and nowhere near monoenergetic. Coherence
> and collimation means less wasted effort and monoenergetic means
> better fit into the capture cross-section.

Aha! Yes... very good.

> Oh, ***; I think I just invented the neutron rifle...

Probably not. The cooling and power supply equipment would be too big. But
perhaps the neutron cannon.
Ooo. I'm going to have to find some use for that weapon in a story, now that
I have a plausible scientific explanation for it....

> >>>Second question, what are some methods that could be used to transform
a
> >>>protium atom into a neutron? Is there some way to reliably force a
> >>>single proton and electron to collide and combine into a neutron?
> >>
> >> As Paul Dietz says, it's _usually_ energetically disallowed.
> >>Exceptions require extremely unusual (at shirtsleeve conditions)
> >>circumstances, so you need to handwave away some very fundamental
> >>physics via Fermi repulsion neutralizers, high-temperature p-p
> >>tunnelling, or similar.
>
> > What's wrong with extremely unusual circumstances? We shouldn't need to
> > handwave away any physics, we just need to come up with a way to
implement
> > those unusual circumstances. Of course, if *that* requires handwaving, I
> > guess we're in trouble, but that's what I'm trying to determine.
>
> Yeah. Come to think of it, I wonder how a BEC of transuranics
> will like losing all its neutrons at once...
>
> >>>Or, looking at muon-catalyzed fusion,
>
> >> Dunno for sure, but ISTR current thinking is that it isn't as
> >>good an idea as was first thought.
>
> > Mm hm. A bit of googling indicates that each muon usually doesn't
catalyze
> > enough fusion reactions to make up the energy used to create it. On the
> > other hand, that's at room temperature. Having the reaction take place
in
> > porous silicon apparently makes up for the problem, though, and
increasing
> > the temperature make thing more favorable still. Of course, all of that
is
> > relating to experiments with deuterium/tritium mixes. It might not work
at
> > all for p-p fusion. But maybe it would if the temperature is increased
> > further.
>
> Sounds vaguely like somebody's trying to make Dilithium real. ;>)

Nah, that's for antimatter. :)

> Any idea what "temperature" means in this context? I refer to the
> fact that in particle physics it can be specific WRT beam and
> lattice directions. Both can be "hot" in some directions and "cold"
> in others. Mix 'n match 'em just right, and bingo!

I'm fairly sure it just means generic willingness-to-give-up-heat as
measured in kelvins.
I'll check that, though.

-l.
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