Atomic compression of the light element plasma to very high densities

Abstract

The basic atomic principles that are critically important for the workability of actual fusion devices are considered. In particular, we discuss the central idea of atomic compression. The atomic compression means self-compression of the light-element plasma that is placed in an isolated cavity with a very hot plasma of heavy elements. The related radiation-driven ablative implosion of the cold light-element thermonuclear fuel is also briefly reviewed. We also discuss the secondary atomic compression that is used to improve thermonuclear combustion in the light-element plasma. A possibility to create thermonuclear explosive devices in which electromagnetic vacuum becomes unstable is analyzed briefly.PACS Nos.: 28.25.Cx, 28.50.Re, 52.50.Jm