Plasma Glow from Neutron Generator (IMAGE)

University of California - Berkeley

Plasma Glow from Neutron Generator

Caption

In the high flux neutron generator, UC Berkeley researchers heat up deuterium atoms in a vacuum chamber to 50,000 degrees Celsius to obtain an ionized plasma (pink glow), then accelerate the ions until they collide and fuse with other deuterium atoms implanted in the titanium cathode, releasing neutrons in the process. The spiral coil is the water-cooled radio-frequency antenna that heats the plasma, viewed through a quartz window into the vacuum chamber.

Credit

Cory Waltz, LLNL

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