American laboratories once again achieve a breakthrough in controllable "nuclear fusion ignition"

CTOnews.com, August 7 (Xinhua) Nuclear fusion is an energy technology that uses the principles of stars to combine hydrogen nuclei into helium nuclei, releasing huge amounts of energy. If nuclear fusion can be achieved under controllable conditions, then human beings can have a clean, safe and unlimited energy.

Last year, the US government's Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) achieved an important milestone in nuclear fusion: it achieved "ignition" for the first time, in which the energy generated by the fusion reaction exceeded the energy needed to stimulate the reaction.

However, this process needs to be repeatedly validated and optimized for fusion to become a reliable source of energy. After months of hard work, LLNL finally lit the fire again last week and issued an announcement on Sunday.

"in an experiment conducted on July 30, we recreated the ignition," the statement said. we are analyzing these results. in accordance with our practice, we plan to report these results in upcoming scientific meetings and peer-reviewed publications. "

CTOnews.com notes that LLNL uses inertial confinement, which uses the world's most powerful laser to illuminate a miniature diamond capsule filled with hydrogen fuel, compressing it and triggering a reaction. In addition, there is another method called magnetic confinement, which uses a strong magnetic field to surround a high-temperature plasma in a circular container and make it react.

At present, no matter which method it is, it still faces many technical and economic challenges. It may take years or even decades for nuclear fusion to really serve mankind. However, the realization of nuclear fusion ignition by LLNL is undoubtedly an encouraging news, and it also brings new hope for nuclear fusion technology.