The effect of relativistic Compton scattering on thermonuclear burn of pure deuterium fuel
The relativistic effects of the Compton scattering on the thermonuclear burn-up of pure deuterium fuel in non-equilibrium plasma have been studied by four temperature (4T) theory. In the limit of low electron temperatures and photon energies, the nonrelativistic Compton scattering is valid and a convenient approximation, but in the high energy exchange rates between electrons and photons, is seen to break down. The deficiencies of the nonrelativistic approximation can be overcome by using the relativistic correction in the photons kinetic equation. In this research, we have utilized the four temperature (4T) theory to calculate the critical burn-up parameter for pure deuterium fuel, while the Compton scattering is considered as a relativistic phenomenon. It was shown that the measured critical burn-up parameter in ignition with relativistic Compton scattering is smaller than that of the parameter in the ignition with the nonrelativistic Compton scattering.