Reply To: Fusion Oil

[Ivy Matt]

I’m not a scientist either, but my understanding is that the beams are produced by strong magnetic fields in the plasmoid. As a plasma consists of unbound positive ions and negative electrons, the ions will exit the plasmoid in one direction (“outward”) while the electrons will (theoretically: see the discussion above) exit the plasmoid in the opposite direction (“inward”). This happens independently of whether or not any fusion reactions take place. Any neutral particles and electromagnetic rays will radiate in all directions, as they are not affected by the magnetic fields.

Note that the concentrated ion beam is a result of the plasma focus design. In a Polywell fusion reactor, for example, the alpha particles would radiate in all directions.