MHD modeling of magnetized target fusion experiments

Summary form only given. Magnetized Target Fusion (MTF) is an alternate approach to controlled fusion in which a dense /spl sim/10 e 17-18 cm-3, preheated /spl sim/200 eV, and magnetized /spl sim/100 kG target plasma is hydrodynamically compressed by an imploding liner. If electron thermal conduction losses are magnetically suppressed, relatively slow /spl sim/1 cm/microsecond "liner-on-plasma" compressions may be practical, using liners driven by inexpensive pulsed power. Target plasmas need to remain relatively free of potentially cooling contaminants during formation and compression. Magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) calculations including detailed effects of radiation, heat conduction, and resistive field diffusion have been used to model separate static target plasma (Russian MAGO, Field Reversed Configuration at Los Alamos National Laboratory) and liner implosion experiments (without plasma fill), such as recently performed at the Air Force Research Laboratory (Albuquerque). Using several different codes, proposed experiments in which such liners are used to compress such target plasmas are now being modeled in one and two dimensions. In this way, it is possible to begin to investigate important issues for the design of such proposed liner-on-plasma fusion experiments. The competing processes of implosion, heating, mixing, and cooling will determine the potential for such MTF experiments to achieve fusion conditions.