China fires up Hineg generator in Hefei city with goal of making world’s strongest neutron beam using nuclear fusion technology
Research team hopes to hit target within a few years, could be put to civilian use or facilitate downsizing of future nuclear weapons
China has fired up its most powerful neutron generator as it aims to produce the world’s strongest neutron beam using nuclear fusion technology within the next few years.
The technology is expected to have a range of applications from scientific research to the development of military weapons.
The High Intensity D-T fusion Neutron Generator (Hineg) at the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Physical Science in Hefei, the capital city of China’s eastern Anhui province, generated more than 1 trillion neutrons per second during its maiden test run on Saturday, according to an announcement on the institute’s website on Wednesday.
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A team of nuclear physicists led by Prof Wu Yican fired deuterium, a heavy and stable isotope of hydrogen, on to a target board made of tritium - another hydrogen isotope that is also highly radioactive.
The two isotopes fused to form helium while releasing a neutron with large amounts of kinetic energy. As the fusion reaction continued, a steady beam of high-energy neutrons was produced.
A neutron generator is a critical component of modern-day nuclear weapons. It creates a fast stream of neutrons to kickstart the chain reaction of fission or fusion materials in a thermal nuclear warhead. An advanced generator can significantly reduce the size and weight of a conventional nuclear weapon.
Moreover, this kind of technology can also be used as a weapon in its own right.