CTX (Compact Toroid Experiment)
ID: ctx
Summary
LANL compact toroid experiment using coaxial plasma gun to generate spheromaks. Foundational node of the three-lab lineage.
Deep Dive Analysis
Overview
CTX (Compact Toroid Experiment) was a LANL program that used a magnetized coaxial plasma gun to generate spheromaks — compact toroids with both toroidal and poloidal magnetic fields. The experiment demonstrated that spheromaks could be formed and sustained using coaxial plasma guns.
Foundational Role
CTX is the foundational node of the three-lab compact toroid lineage. The coaxial plasma gun technology developed for CTX propagated to:
- LLNL's Beta II (incorporated LASL plasma gun features)
- LLNL's RACE (coaxial railgun compact toroid acceleration)
- AFRL's MARAUDER (compact toroid weapons at Shiva Star)
- HyperV/HyperJet's plasma guns (commercial PJMIF)
Connection to FRX
CTX (spheromaks) and FRX (FRCs) were parallel programs at LANL. Together they established the two branches of compact toroid physics: spheromaks (with toroidal field) and FRCs (without toroidal field). Both descend from the same LANL research environment.
Key Findings
- ▸ LLNL's Beta II (incorporated LASL plasma gun features)
- ▸ LLNL's RACE (coaxial railgun compact toroid acceleration)
- ▸ AFRL's MARAUDER (compact toroid weapons at Shiva Star)
- ▸ HyperV/HyperJet's plasma guns (commercial PJMIF)
Related Entities (16)
Los Alamos National Laboratory
Beta II
Air Force Research Laboratory
Fusion Driven Rocket (FDR)
Field Propulsion Technologies
NASA MSFC
Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory
Lockheed Martin Skunk Works®
China DFH Spaceborne Pulsed Power Ground Prototype
doe
hypersonic-plasma-sheath-sbir
llnl
spheromak
PRC FRC Program (CAEP/CAS)
Skunk Works® CFR Program
Tokamak Energy STEP Contract
Network Graph
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View in Network GraphTimeline Mentions (5)
Magnetized Co-axial Plasma Source Origin
H. Alfven and colleagues publish the technique for magnetized co-axial plasma sources, which later forms the basis for the CTX experiment.
fusion-physicsCTX Spheromak Stability Verified
Experiments at Los Alamos verify the gross stability of spheromaks in oblate geometries using solid-wall flux conservers.
fusion-physicsCTX Achieves 100 eV Electron Temperatures
The CTX experiment becomes the first spheromak to achieve electron temperatures over 100 eV through improved vacuum practices and impurity reduction.
fusion-physicsLLNL Beta II Compact Toroid Experiment
LLNL Beta II compact toroid experiment using coaxial plasma gun with LASL features. Second link in three-lab lineage: LANL (CTX) → LLNL (Beta II) → AFRL (MARAUDER).
Fusion PhysicsLANL CTX Spheromak Experiment
LANL CTX using magnetized coaxial plasma gun to generate spheromaks. Foundational node of the three-lab compact toroid lineage.
Fusion PhysicsGlossary Definition
Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) compact toroid experiment using a magnetized coaxial plasma gun to generate spheromaks. CTX established the plasma gun as a primary tool for compact toroid formation and is the foundational node of the three-lab compact toroid lineage (LANL → LLNL → AFRL).
Category: Experiments View in Glossary →Research References
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