An ignition criterion for inertial fusion boosted by microturbulence

Abstract

Turbulence enhances fusion reactivity, enabling ignition at lower temperature. A modified Lawson-like ignition criterion is derived for inertially confined plasmas harboring turbulent kinetic energy. Remarkably, if small-scale turbulence is driven in the hot spot while avoiding mixing at the boundary, less energy is required to ignite a target. The optimal length scale for hot-spot turbulence is quantified, typically lying in the micron range.

5 pages, 5 figures