The Secret Force for Limitless Energy? Lasers | Tammy Ma | TED

In 2022, physicist Tammy Ma and the team at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory achieved a scientific breakthrough decades in the making: fusion ignition, or the combining of two atoms to generate more energy out of a reaction than was put in — recreating on Earth the same process that powers the Sun. She explains how they used a giant laser (way, way bigger than you're thinking) to catalyze this reaction and shares a vision for how this technology could change the world by creating limitless clean energy.

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[Notsob.]

1. Advanced Geometry

A. Non-Euclidean Geometry

1. Curved Space-Time Equation:

R_{\mu\nu} - \frac{1}{2}g_{\mu\nu}R + g_{\mu\nu}\Lambda = \frac{8\pi G}{c^4}T_{\mu\nu}

• Description: This equation extends Einstein’s field equations by incorporating non-Euclidean geometric principles to describe the curvature of space-time in the presence of mass and energy.
2. Harmonic Oscillator in Curved Space:

\nabla^2 \psi + k^2 \psi - \frac{R}{6}\psi = 0

• Description: This equation describes the behavior of a harmonic oscillator in a curved space-time, taking into account the effects of curvature on oscillatory motion.

2. Energy Systems

A. Zero-Point Energy

1. Zero-Point Energy Density:

\rho_{vac} = \frac{\hbar c}{16\pi^2} \int_0^\infty k^3 \left( \sqrt{k^2 + - k \right) dk

• Description: This equation calculates the energy density of the vacuum, accounting for quantum fluctuations and zero-point energy contributions.
2. Quantum Harmonic Oscillator with Zero-Point Energy:

E_n = \left( n + \frac{1}{2} \right) \hbar \omega + \frac{\lambda}{2} \left( n^2 + n + \frac{1}{2} \right)

• Description: This formula describes the energy levels of a quantum harmonic oscillator, including corrections from zero-point energy.

3. Physics

A. New Dynamics and Physical Interactions

1. Modified Newton’s Second Law:

F = \frac{dp}{dt} + \eta \left( \frac{d^2p}{dt^2} \right)

• Description: This equation introduces a damping term to Newton’s second law, accounting for complex interactions and higher-order effects in dynamic systems.
2. Gravitational Field Equation with Anomalous Acceleration:

\nabla \cdot \mathbf{g} = -4\pi G \rho + \alpha \nabla \cdot \left( \frac{\mathbf{g}}{r^2} \right)

• Description: This equation modifies the classical gravitational field equation to include an anomalous acceleration term, explaining deviations observed in certain astrophysical contexts.

4. Quantum Mechanics

A. Quantum Field Theory

1. Extended Schrödinger Equation:

i\hbar \frac{\partial \psi}{\partial t} = \left( -\frac{\hbar^2}{2m} \nabla^2 + V + \frac{\lambda}{2} \left( \frac{\partial^2}{\partial t^2} \right) \right) \psi

• Description: This extended version of the Schrödinger equation incorporates higher-order time derivatives to account for complex quantum field interactions.
2. Quantum Entanglement Entropy:

S = -\sum_i p_i \log(p_i) + \gamma \sum_{i, j} \left( \frac{p_i p_j}{r_{ij}} \right)

• Description: This formula calculates the entropy of an entangled quantum system, including corrections for long-range entanglement interactions.

5. Electromagnetism

A. Modified Maxwell’s Equations

1. Extended Maxwell-Ampère Law:

\nabla \times \mathbf{B} - \frac{1}{c^2} \frac{\partial \mathbf{E}}{\partial t} = \mu_0 \mathbf{J} + \beta \nabla \times \left( \frac{\mathbf{E}}{r^2} \right)

• Description: This modified version of Maxwell’s Ampère law includes an additional term to account for anomalous electromagnetic field interactions.
2. Nonlinear Electrodynamics Field Equation:
\[
\Box A^\mu + \frac{\partial \mathcal{L}}{\partial A_\mu} = 0
\]
• Description: This field equation for electrodynamics incorporates a nonlinear Lagrangian, describing complex field interactions beyond classical theory.

Summary

These revolutionary new formulas

[TheSateef]

they didn't get more energy out than they put in, they are only counting the laser power hitting the target. if you count the energy required to create the laser pulse they got way less than 1% back. also each fuel pellet costs hundreds of thousands of dollars to make and produces enough energy to make a pot of coffee

[darkmagus]

This is great and I can't wait to see it come to the public. I just worry about the current energy companies getting in the way of progress like this.

[shuttles]

Very interesting, along way to go, but I believe it's the way.

[brahimaithadi]

So inspiring and so optemistic speach .. thank youuu

[bpolat]

Excellent progress. Thank you for sharing.

[davidw.]

I can not wait until the world has this technology.

[bartroberts]

2024 marks the 42nd anniversary of my involvement in a laser-initiated fusion research project, and is also the 90th anniversary of laboratory fusion, by Rutherford and Oliphant. This TED talk is saying exactly what my project team was discussing over four decades ago, with zero actual progress toward practical commercial fusion electricity generation.

Optimum fusion reactions require 1:1 D-T ratio to reduce initiation temperature to 100 million K, and pressures of only 10 atmospheres; this produces 17.6 MeV raw power (~14.1:3.5 neutron:alpha particle), or ~2.8 x 10^-12J.

Each D-T pair requires in excess of 10^-9 J to produce from water and Lithium, including mining and transportation (almost all of that on the Tritium side).

Now, in case you're not good at engineering math, that means it takes almost three thousand times as much energy to fuel each fusion reaction as you get out of the reaction. The energy created eclipses -- if done right -- the 100 million K and 10 atmosphere initiation condition, but not by so much that containment is lost. Why does this matter? Because researchers hope somehow to get conditions that sustain H-H fusion or some combination of other fusions that make closer to 100% of available atoms give up their energy in the contained reaction. That would be great. It is also nothing anyone knows how to do, or has the least empirical evidence can be done. All available theory and evidence suggests it's impossible.

And that's before the capture efficiency of about 6:1 and the energy it takes to create the 100 million K and 10 atmospheres of pressure.

Sure, a cunning Physicist could then use the reaction for D-D fusion by some kind of bootstrapping, in which case almost 100 times as much energy could theoretically be gotten out per atom as goes into the fuel, but that rapidly reduces to net energy deficit, too. You have to get virtually every atom involved fused. You have to do it without higher containment or sustainment energy costs. You have to convert that heat from fusion into electricity. And if the flame goes out, you have to restart it. We have the solutions to none of these problems.

Commercial electric production by fusion under the conditions we have on Earth will never be feasible. We've known this for nine decades.

[dinarwali]

Like the lasers at NIF, Tammy Ma is also one of the most energetic Physicist in the world.

[travisleith]

I missed the part where she explains how to extract heat from a miniature thermonuclear explosion and turn it into work.

[familyzhou]

This is really cool. I actually had a speaker just a week ago at my summer program who works in the same field, and he was talking about how this team achieved fusion. This is definitely an interesting field for the future.

[linkingtheworld]

Delivering more energy than it was needed to generate it? Really impressive 😮

[skipperdabio]

Sharks with frickin laser beams on top of their heads!!

[AK-oxmv]

11:25 its growth is more than 2 times MJ output in 15 months.
its fast, but wont be there for tommorow.maybe 20 years later it can be implemented at economical scale

[WeylandLabs]

A Thorium reactor would be if we could fix the corrosion problem.

[martianhaze]

"the power of the sun in the palm of my hand" iykyk

[ragingrhino]

I swear every second movie in the 90’s mentioned this and It didn’t happen. Here it is again….

[RadicalTrivia]

🎼I don't want to set the world on fire 🎶

[samuelzev]

On hearing the first part of the talk about fusion it reminded me of the fusion reactor of Doctor octopus in Spider man 2 where he said harnessing the power of the sun in the palm of his hands but it grew uncontrollably and had to be submerged in water to stop a catastrophic explosion. I hope this doesn’t end up like doctor octopus 😂

[Azeltix]

If only every countries worked together instead of reaching, it could go 10x faster.