vätekärnfusion

Vätekärnfusion, also known as hydrogen nuclear fusion, is a nuclear reaction where two or more atomic nuclei collide with high energy and merge to form a single, heavier nucleus. This process releases a significant amount of energy. The most common and abundant fuel for fusion on Earth is isotopes of hydrogen, namely deuterium and tritium.

In stars, like our Sun, vätekärnfusion is the primary source of energy. The immense gravitational pressure and extremely high temperatures in the stellar core force hydrogen nuclei to overcome their mutual electrical repulsion and fuse together. The main fusion process in stars is the proton-proton chain, which converts hydrogen into helium.

Scientists are actively researching and developing fusion power as a potential source of clean and virtually limitless energy on Earth. The goal is to replicate the conditions found in stars within a controlled environment, typically using magnetic confinement (tokamaks and stellarators) or inertial confinement (laser-driven fusion). Successful fusion power plants would produce energy without greenhouse gas emissions and with significantly less long-lived radioactive waste compared to current nuclear fission reactors.

Challenges in achieving controlled fusion include maintaining the extremely high temperatures and pressures required, confining the hot plasma, and achieving a net energy gain where more energy is produced than is consumed to initiate and sustain the reaction. Despite these challenges, significant progress has been made in recent decades, fueling optimism for the future of fusion energy.