EMC2 collaborating with other companies?

[Tom Ligon]

I don't think I'm giving away any confidential information if I say that Dr. Park is really, really good at this sort of experimental stuff. And I got that straight from Dr. Nebel.

What you have been seeing from EMC2 these last few years is the work of a meticulous scientist and his minions.

[mvanwink5]

Tom, I can't say that I have any insight such that I can understand what you mean, but if you are happy, then so am I. Plasma experimentation is tough, from what I understand from those who I believe know, so to make progress is a respectable thing. Maybe this year we will find out some of what has transpired.
Thanks.

[raelik]

I am just reading Kevin’s master’s thesis. I like it. His explanations were very clear. Kevin’s thesis has density measurements from WB-8. At present, I do not think you can get that information anywhere else.

I just finished reading the thesis myself too, and I agree, it was very well done. However, the density measurements it contains from WB-8 aren't with it in an operating regime. It just measured the density of a test plasma sent in with a plasma gun with the coils at 2 kilogauss. The coils weren't charged, and the electron gun wasn't being used. It was just an experiment to test the interferometer's ability to measure the plasma density, and the B-field's ability to contain a plasma over a usable period of time, both of which it demonstrated. Just eyeballing figure 6-7, looks like the density decays at a constant logarithmic rate over about 0.2 ms once the plasma gun current was shut off. This was with a fairly minimal field strength, and I'm assuming a thermalized plasma, so no wiffleball effects should have been present to enhance the containment.

[Betruger]

Not quite far enough to ring Doc Carlson's bell, yet..?

[raelik]

Yeah, not quite yet I think. Once they get the refractometer in place and working in concert with the interferometer, then they'll be able to do much more useful plasma diagnostics over a wider range of operating conditions. The "real" definitive evidence of the wiffleball effect that Art would probably be able to accept (MAYBE) would be the graph of the density decay for with a neutral test plasma and the B-field at the same strength needed for minimal to moderate fusion, vs. the same B-field but with the coils charged, and using the electron gun and deuterium ions. Get some neutron counts above background to show that fusion is happening, AND show better containment of the plasma than just the B-field alone could account for, and I think you've at least what smells like a smoking gun, at least as far as the wiffleball effect is concerned.

[ladajo]

Not quite far enough to ring Doc Carlson's bell, yet..?

Not answering. I poked him and got nothing a while back.

[Solo]

If you take that exponential decay curve from Kevin's thesis and do a bit of algebra, you will find a particle confinement time of 0.02 ms, which is pretty crappy.

[raelik]

If you take that exponential decay curve from Kevin's thesis and do a bit of algebra, you will find a particle confinement time of 0.02 ms, which is pretty crappy.

2 kilogauss is about the same as a small NIB magnet, so I wouldn't expect much confinement.

[Robthebob]

no one can say anything or has anything to say, for like a couple months now.

[mvanwink5]

A couple of months?