Make your own fusion reactor
17 year old high school student builds fusion reactor. Amateur Nuclear Fusion - Fusion is Easy!
Fusiondevice High school student Thiago Olson has gone beyond basic physics class. Way beyond. Using parts and materials scrounged from the local hardware story and eBay, Olson built a working fusion reactor. In November 2006, a few tiny bubbles in his neutron dosimeter told him that he’d achieved success: Fusing hydrogen nuclei into helium.
While it takes far more energy to run than it produces, Olson’s nuclear reactor is pretty bad-ass, producing 200 million-degree plasma at its core — or, as Olson points out, “several times hotter than the core of the sun.”
Being me, I had to look around for more. I found the open source fusor research consortium. I found plans, research, and this fusor built by Richard Hull. It’s his fourth version - definitely worth checking out. Essentially, all the atmospheric air is removed via vacuum. Then you add a bit of deuterium gas, some high voltage and if you got it right, bask in the glow of your own personal fusion reaction. (Just watch out for X-ray leaks.)
