The dense Z-pinch as a fusion power source

Summary Form only given, as follows. Previous experiments have shown that a dense Z-pinch formed from a frozen deuterium fiber and driven with a rapidly rising current from a high-voltage pulse generator is stable, in direct contrast with the predictions of simple MHD (magnetohydrodynamic) theory. In the author´s experiment, the pinch stability was maintained as long as the current rose and was lost as soon as it peaked. The authors have estimated the temperature of the pinch from the Bennett relation. At 640 kA, this corresponds to a temperature of 200 eV, which is not hot enough for the pinch to produce a significant number of thermonuclear reactions. However, if the pinch stability can be maintained at higher currents, say 2 MA, then it can be shown from simple zero-d models that the pinch could achieve thermonuclear breakeven.<>