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Neutron generators are devices which contain compact linear accelerators and that produce neutrons by fusing isotopes of hydrogen together. The fusion reactions take place in these devices by accelerating either deuterium, tritium, or a mixture of these two isotopes into a metal hydride target which also contains either deuterium, tritium or a mixture. Fusion of deuterium atoms (D + D) results in the formation of a He-3 ion and a neutron with a kinetic energy of approximately 2.5 MeV. Fusion of a deuterium and a tritium atom (D + T) results in the formation of a He-4 ion and a neutron with a kinetic energy of approximately 14.1 MeV. A Linear particle accelerator is an electrical device for the acceleration of subatomic particles. ...
Properties In physics, the neutron is a subatomic particle with no net electric charge and a mass of 939. ...
Isotopes are atoms of a chemical element whose nuclei have the same atomic number, Z, but different atomic weights, A. The word isotope, meaning at the same place, comes from the fact that isotopes are located at the same place on the periodic table. ...
General Name, Symbol, Number hydrogen, H, 1 Chemical series nonmetals Group, Period, Block 1, 1, s Appearance colorless Atomic mass 1. ...
The deuterium-tritium (D-T) fusion reaction is considered the most promising for producing fusion power. ...
Deuterium, also called heavy hydrogen, is a stable isotope of hydrogen with a natural abundance in the oceans of one atom in 6400 of hydrogen (see VSMOW; the abundance changes slightly from one kind of natural water to another). ...
Tritium (symbol T or 3H) is a radioactive isotope of hydrogen. ...
An electronvolt (symbol: eV) is the amount of energy gained by a single unbound electron when it falls through an electrostatic potential difference of one volt. ...
Thousands of such small, relatively inexpensive systems have been built over the past five decades.
Alternative neutron generator technologies
Another type of innovative neutron generator is offered by a start-up company in Germany: NSD-Fusion. This neutron generator differs from the conventional ion beam onto solid target types because it avoids using a solid target which will be eroded. Originally called a fusor, it was invented by Philo Farnsworth, the inventor of electronic television, and is often referred to as inertial electrostatic confinement fusion. The fusor remained largely ignored until the 1990s when its commercial potential was recognized and improvements made to enhance the characteristics as a neutron generator for industry. US3386883 - fusor — June 4, 1968 This article refers to the physical machinery, for the astronomical term see Fusor (astronomy). ...
Philo Taylor Farnsworth (August 19, 1906 – March 11, 1971) was an American inventor who was the first to demonstrate and patent a working electronic television system. ...
Inertial electrostatic confinement (often abbreviated as IEC) of a plasma can be achieved with electrostatic fields which accelerate charged particles (either ions or electrons) directly, in a confined space. ...
In February 2006, researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute developed a "tabletop" neutron generator that uses an electric field running through deuterium gas to cause a D + D fusion reaction. [1] Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, or RPI, is a private university in Troy, New York, near Albany, founded in 1824 by Stephen Van Rensselaer. ...
In physics, an electric field or E-field is an effect produced by an electric charge (or a time-varying magnetic field) that exerts a force on charged objects in the field. ...
External links
Organizations that manufacture neutron generators
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