Abstract
SEVERAL attempts have been made (for example in Zeta 1, Sceptre 2, Perhapstron 3, etc.) to produce high-temperature plasma in a toroidal discharge by means of large induced currents. These experiments have shown that Joule-heating of the plasma by the induced electron current is inefficient. Increasing this current alone does not seem to be sufficient to produce the required high-temperature plasma for controlled fusion. On the other hand, it is observed in toroidal discharges that acceleration of ions takes place, as indicated by the anisotropy of neutron distribution4 and by the Doppler shift of spectral lines5. Ion acceleration is possible5 when ion-electron collision cross-section becomes small, a condition which sets in when the electrons begin to ‘run away’.
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GEORGE, K. Plasma Heating by Current-Saturation. Nature 184, 1790 (1959). https://doi.org/10.1038/1841790a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/1841790a0
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