Nuclear fusion
hideIn nuclear physics and nuclear chemistry, nuclear fusion is the process by which multiple like-charged atomic nuclei join together to form a heavier nucleus. It is accompanied by the release or absorption of energy, which allows matter to enter a plasma state.
The fusion of two nuclei with lower mass than iron (which, along with nickel, has the largest binding energy per nucleon) generally releases energy while the fusion of nuclei heavier than iron absorbs energy; vice-versa for the reverse process, nuclear fission. In the simplest case of hydrogen fusion, two protons have to be brought close enough for their mutual electric repulsion to be overcome by the nuclear force and the subsequent release of energy.
Nuclear fusion occurs naturally in stars. Artificial fusion in human enterprises has also been achieved, although has not yet been completely controlled. Building upon the nuclear transmutation experiments of Ernest Rutherford done a few years earlier, fusion of light nuclei (hydrogen isotopes) was first observed by Mark Oliphant in 1932; the steps of the main cycle of nuclear fusion in stars were subsequently worked out by Hans Bethe throughout the remainder of that decade. Research into fusion for military purposes began in the early 1940s as part of the Manhattan Project, but was not successful until 1952. Research into controlled fusion for civilian purposes began in the 1950s, and continues to this day.
For more information about Nuclear fusion, read the full article at
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News tagged with nuclear fusion
Miracle light: Can lasers solve the energy crisis?
Dec 15, 2009 |
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Next year will mark the 50th birthday of the laser, one of the most productive and widely used mega-inventions of the last century. Scientists hope that 2010 also will see the launch of laser technology's greatest challenge: ...
Inside the dark heart of the Eagle
Dec 16, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Herschel has peered inside an unseen stellar nursery and revealed surprising amounts of activity. Some 700 newly-forming stars are estimated to be crowded into filaments of dust stretching ...
Beaming in on Warm Dense Matter (w/ Video)
Dec 17, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- The Neutralized Drift Compression Experiment II (NDCX-II) now under construction at Berkeley Lab will deliver a high-current pulse of lithium ions to a foil target almost simultaneously, momentarily heating ...
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A new generation of computer tablets is on its way
Electronics / Consumer & Gadgets
Dec 17, 2009 |
3.7 / 5 (7) |
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I may have caught a glimpse of the future last week. In San Francisco, a startup company called Fusion Garage showed off the JooJoo, a touch-screen device that looks like the iPhone's big brother. The JooJoo ...
Study shows immune system protein involved in reprogramming adult cells to express stem cell genes
9 hours ago |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists have discovered a protein required to quickly and efficiently reprogram human skin cells to express embryonic stem cell genes.
Giant Planet Set for a Cataclysmic Show
Dec 16, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A team of Chinese astronomers have discovered a giant planet close to the exotic binary star system QS Virginis. Although dormant now, in the future the two stars will one day erupt in a violent ...
Researchers identify possible imaging method to stratify breast cancer without biopsy
Dec 17, 2009 |
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Scientists from the Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson have discovered a possible way for malignant breast tumors to be identified, without the need for a biopsy. The findings were published online ahead of print in the Journal of ...
Researchers revise long-held theory of fruit-fly development
Dec 17, 2009 |
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For decades, science texts have told a simple and straightforward story about a particular protein—a transcription factor—that helps the embryo of the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, pattern tissues in a m ...
Large Hadron Collider produces first physics results
Dec 15, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- The first paper on proton collisions in the CERN Large Hadron Collider (LHC) - designed to provide the highest energy ever explored with particle accelerators - is published online this week ...
Brown dwarf pair mystifies astronomers
Dec 21, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Two brown dwarf-sized objects orbiting a giant old star show that planets may assemble around stars more quickly and efficiently than anyone thought possible, according to an international ...
More precise measurements of the W boson
Dec 21, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- "The W boson is one of the very few major building blocks of matter," Dmitri Denisov tells PhysOrg.com. "It is a member of a family of particles that is the most fundamental in nature. The W boson is res ...
Valuable, rare, raw earth materials extracted from industrial waste stream
Dec 15, 2009 |
4.6 / 5 (9) |
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Fierce competition over raw materials for new green technologies could become a thing of the past, thanks to a discovery by scientists from the University of Leeds.
Large Hadron Collider preparing 2010 new science restart
Dec 18, 2009 |
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At its 153rd session today, the CERN Council heard that the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) ended its first full period of operation in style on Wednesday 16 December. Collisions at 2.36TeV recorded since last ...
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