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arXiv · 1611.03951

Nuclear Fusion in Laser-Driven Counter-Streaming Collisionless Plasmas

Abstract

Nuclear fusion reactions are the most important processes in nature to power stars and produce new elements, and lie at the center of the understanding of nucleosynthesis in the universe. It is critically important to study the reactions in full plasma environments that are close to true astrophysical conditions. By using laser-driven counter-streaming collisionless plasmas, we studied the fusion D$+$D$\rightarrow n +^3$He in a Gamow-like window around 27 keV. The results show that astrophysical nuclear reaction yield can be modulated significantly by the self-generated electromagnetic fields and the collective motion of the plasma. This plasma-version mini-collider may provide a novel tool for studies of astrophysics-interested nuclear reactions in plasma with tunable energies in earth-based laboratories.

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BibTeXRIS

Xiaopeng Zhang, Jiarui Zhao, Dawei Yuan, Changbo Fu, Jie Bao, Liming Chen, Jianjun He, Long Hou, Liang Li, Yanfei Li, Yutong Li, Guoqiang Liao, Yongjoo Rhee, Yang Sun, Skiwei Xu, Gang Zhao, Baojun Zhu, Jianqiang Zhu, Zhe Zhang, Jie Zhang. 2016-11-12. Nuclear Fusion in Laser-Driven Counter-Streaming Collisionless Plasmas. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevc.96.055801

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