Nuclear diagnostic for fast alpha particles

USH75H · kind H · statutory invention registration

Assignee

• The United States of America as represented by the United States · US

Inventors

• Larry R. Grisham
• Douglass E. Post, Jr. · Montgomery, US
• John Dawson

Key dates

• Grant date: Jun 3, 1986

Classification

• Technology area (CPC —): General

Abstract

Measurement of the velocity distribution of confined energetic alpha particles resulting from deuterium-tritium fusion reactions in a magnetically contained plasma is provided. The fusion plasma is seeded with energetic boron neutrals for producing, by means of the reaction .sup.10 B (.alpha.,n) .sup.13 N reaction, radioactive nitrogen nuclei which are then collected by a probe. The radioactivity of the probe is then measured by conventional techniques in determining the energy distribution of the alpha particles in the plasma. In a preferred embodiment, diborane gas (B.sub.2 H.sub.6) is the source of the boron neutrals to produce .sup.13 N which decays almost exclusively by positron emission with a convenient half-life of 10 minutes.