Source Title:
Open Physics
|
Volume/Issue:
Volume 7: Issue 3

Anomalous enhancements of low-energy fusion rates in plasmas: the role of ion momentum distributions and inhomogeneous screening

Massimo Coraddu 1 , Marcello Lissia, and Piero Quarati
  • 1 Ist. Naz. Fisica Nucleare (I.N.F.N.) Cagliari, Cittadella universitaria, I-09042, Monserrato, Italy
  • 2 Dipart. di Fisica dell’Università di Cagliari, Cittadella universitaria, I-09042, Monserrato, Italy
  • 3 Dipartimento di Fisica, Politecnico di Torino, C.so Duca degli Abruzzi 24, I-10129, Torino, Italy
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.2478/s11534-009-0068-y
|
Published online:
25 Jun 2009
PDF

Abstract

Non-resonant fusion cross-sections significantly higher than corresponding theoretical predictions are observed in low-energy experiments with deuterated matrix target. Models based on thermal effects, electron screening, or quantum-effect dispersion relations have been proposed to explain these anomalous results: none of them appears to satisfactory reproduce the experiments. Velocity distributions are fundamental for the reaction rates and deviations from the Maxwellian limit could play a central role in explaining the enhancement. We examine two effects: an increase of the tail of the target Deuteron momentum distribution due to the Galitskii-Yakimets quantum uncertainty effect, which broadens the energy-momentum relation; and spatial fluctuations of the Debye-Hückel radius leading to an effective increase of electron screening. Either effect leads to larger reaction rates especially large at energies below a few keV, reducing the discrepancy between observations and theoretical expectations.

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Journal + Issues

Open Physics

Online ISSN:
2391-5471
First published:
14 Jan 2015
Language:
English
Publisher:
De Gruyter

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