Steady-state thermonuclear plasma as a source of nuclear-physics data

Abstract

Measurements of cross sections of nuclear reactions of charged particles in the kiloelectron-volt range present a difficult experimental problem because of their small size. At the same time, the need for accuracy in the determination of such cross sections continues to grow in connection with the active development of such branches of science as controlled thermonuclear fusion, astrophysics, cosmology, and nuclear physics itself. The present communication discusses the motivation for performing experiments in this energy range and the difficulties such experiments involve, and proposes a new experimental approach to measuring the cross sections of such reactions using the steady-state plasmas available in thermonuclear facilities.