magnetic containment of plasma

[brianreese]

is there any way to contain plasma in a coherent beam, so that the plasma is not contained by anything other then the magnetic field, that is to say that if the field where to be turned off, the plasma would simply dissipate, and i don't mean like in between 2 plates with a opening at one end, i want to be able to reach out and touch the plasma without having to deal with anything other then the magnetic field, and the temp of the plasma, is there any way to say, confine plasma around a central rod, but on the outside?

 

[cliffordsfleas]

My guess is no. I was reading up on a Japanese thermal research project where they were dealing with some of the highest human generated temps ever recorded using magnetically contained plasma. Since part of the article was discussing a sophisticated compound designed to withstand the heat by-product and this was a cutting edge experiment this year, I'd lean towards "no".

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

Yes

Hopefully ITER will eventually confine plasma well enough to produce a net gain of energy.

 

[eLiu]

I'm pretty sure the OP wants something along the lines of a lightsaber.

And I think such a thing does kind of exist. Google for plasma cutting surgical instruments. Some guys in Japan(?) developed a scalpel replacement that uses hot plasma to cut & cauterize at once.

 

[Ninjahedge]

If you could really contain that energy in any way that would make it possible for it to do damage to another, you could probably just develop a contained magnetic field that would be possible to do the same, if not more damage using the same power of containment....

Plasma may be hot, but it does not have much mass. you swould need to continuously power it to be able to do any serious (continuous) damage before its energy was used, say, on a metal door or a volume of water....

 

[Gibsons]

If you could really contain that energy in any way that would make it possible for it to do damage to another, you could probably just develop a contained magnetic field that would be possible to do the same, if not more damage using the same power of containment....

Plasma may be hot, but it does not have much mass. you swould need to continuously power it to be able to do any serious (continuous) damage before its energy was used, say, on a metal door or a volume of water....

So the low density means not much heat despite the high temperature. :hmm: Can plasma be pressurized to high densities? Does it remain a plasma or does it sort of collapse into a gas?

 

[Ninjahedge]

I will have to look up the definition of Plasma, but I thought it was superheated gasd. Gas that may have something going on atomically because of its high energy state (like no electrons? Again, I will have to look up the precise definition).

But the thing is, that much energy requires a lot to be contained. If you have something that hot and that condensed, you will be using a LOT of EM energy to hold it there. If you are using that much in the first place, wouldn't it be easier to develop something that would use EM to rip the electorns away from many substances? Maybe ionize particles to the extent where they lose cohesion?

Kind of like putting brass knuckels on Superman. Why bother, you know?

 

[Gibsons]

I will have to look up the definition of Plasma, but I thought it was superheated gasd. Gas that may have something going on atomically because of its high energy state (like no electrons? Again, I will have to look up the precise definition).

But the thing is, that much energy requires a lot to be contained. If you have something that hot and that condensed, you will be using a LOT of EM energy to hold it there. If you are using that much in the first place, wouldn't it be easier to develop something that would use EM to rip the electorns away from many substances? Maybe ionize particles to the extent where they lose cohesion?

Kind of like putting brass knuckels on Superman. Why bother, you know?

My understanding is a plasma acts like a gas in that it has no defined shape or volume, but it's special because some percentage of the atoms are ionized and that changes a lot of things. I have no idea what that percentage might be or how it's defined...

So I'm assuming that what's a plasma at some temperature and pressure might become an ordinary gas at the same temperature and higher pressure.

Anyway, I think you're right - it would probably take a lot of pressure to really make a 'dense' plasma, and that seems incredibly difficult to do with a magnetic field.

 

[brianreese]

well see, i know about the power requirements of heating plasma(and yes you can pressurize plasma without it turning into gas) basicly plasma is a gas that has been electrified, act like gas physically, but reacts to magnetic fields(that is a very simplified way to put it) but what i wish to why is, if i had a central rod, could a make a mag feild around that rod, so that it holds the plasma close to the rod, like i know magnets pull toward poles, but alone the magnet will it pull in, or is there some other means of configuring magnets to be able to get a containment field around a central rod? and yes, this is a lightsaber thingy

 

[Ninjahedge]

The only problem would be specific heat. Plasma is not very dense, and while getting a few liters/grams of it on your skin will not make you a happy camper (if done right, you may TASTE just right, however), I do not see it being able to be anything cool like a Light Saber or such.

I think the more realistic weapon/tool was like what was talked about in Foundation. An atomic cutter that would sever down beyond the subatomic level to such an extent that placing the secered edges back together could cause an atomic reconstruction and reformation resulting in a welded surface with no weld.

The problem with containing plasma would not be its containment, but more likely the ability to heat, supercondense AND contian it enough to make it into a glowing sword (that would not give you a tan, or cancer, or a really nice sautee by holding it).

Maybe looking at resonant light would be a way of doing it. Seeing how a range of frequencies could produce a combined heightened amplitude.....

Or does that only work with sound.......