American researchers achieve breakthrough in nuclear fusion

The results, obtained by a team of researchers from the state’s National Ignition Facility (NIF) at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California, mark a milestone on the road to unlocking a new source of energy.

Next major technical hurdles
Nuclear fusion may be able to generate large amounts of electricity in a climate-neutral and safe manner in a few years’ time. However, there is still a long way to go before mass production due to the ongoing major technical hurdles.

Nearly a year ago, advances in nuclear fusion were announced at the institute. A team of researchers reported in the journal Nature early this year that the plasma had become ignited. This ultimately results in the fusion reaction being self-sustaining. In the nuclear fusion reactor, the fuel is in the form of so-called plasma – this state of matter is created when a gas becomes extremely hot.

Technology is considered clean and safe
Both nuclear power and nuclear fusion derive energy from the binding forces of atomic nuclei. However, nuclear energy splits large atoms, produces radioactive waste and carries the risk of serious accidents. Nuclear fusion, on the other hand, fuses small atomic nuclei – fused – into larger ones, the technology is considered clean and safe. This form of energy generation is similar to what happens in stars like the sun.

For their experiments, the researchers in California used the most powerful laser system in the world (pictured above) to convert small amounts of heavy and superheavy hydrogen (deuterium and tritium, n. ) into a plasma with a temperature of about one million degrees. In addition, many laser beams heat the inside of a container that is only a few millimeters in size.