Analytical model for the temperature field of a plasma heated by fast and monoenergetic ion beams

Abstract

An analytical model for the determination of the spatial temperature field of a deuterium–tritium plasma heated by a fast and monoenergetic fully stripped ion beam is presented. This analytical model provides relevant hot spot properties in good agreement respect those generated by a numerical model for fast monoenergetic ion beams. The model is useful as it can serve as starting point of detailed numerical radiative-hydrodynamics simulation of the subsequent ignition and burning process of the plasma, avoiding the difficulties of the different spatial and temporal scales involve in the problem. Furthermore, the analytical model provides relationships between the main variables of the hot spots generated that help to a better understanding of the interaction. The results presented in this work were obtained for a beam of fully stripped ions of carbon in a wide range of the beam parameters.