Science makes a new breakthrough in the development of fusion energy

Look no further, fusion is how the Sun, as well as other stars we know, generate energy. Scientists want to build a star right on Earth, creating a clean energy source for thousands of lives.

Fusion is the way the Sun, as well as the stars, generate energy. 

So far, the fusion process has been very difficult. The amount of energy input is still greater than the output, rendering a fusion reactor completely useless. But in the new report, the team claims they have created a process that allows matter to self-heat when it reaches a plasma state, bringing efficient fusion reactors one step closer to reality.

The new study, published in the journal Nature, describes how the scientists successfully carried out the new experiment.

The experiment referred to in the new report is just one of many breakthroughs required before humanity can obtain efficient fusion energy. But it is still the key success that allows fusion energy to live up to expectations.

Simply put, the team has compressed and maintained the temperature of matter in the plasma state, which means maintaining the energy-generating state of the furnace. To perform the test, the team created plasma from deuterium - an isotope of hydrogen found in seawater and tritium - created in a reactor.

The matter particles produced when nuclei fusion will become a source of heat to maintain the extremely hot state of the plasma.

Of the four successful experiments, there was one in which the reactor produced 170 kilojoules of energy from just a millimeter-sized sphere of matter containing less than a milligram of isotope.

The amount of energy produced by the reactor is already greater than the amount of energy input, but the output of the fusion reactor is still too small. Moreover, the process of keeping the furnace and the laser heating the matter running still uses too much energy. However, the team asserts that the furnace was accurate, well controlled in the test and could lay the groundwork for many future breakthroughs.

'It is not yet clear whether this research will lead us to an energy efficient future,' University of York scientist Nigel Woolsey wrote in a statement. "But the aim of developing a fuel that can mitigate the effects of climate change, while allowing us to enjoy the benefits of electric power, is certainly worth pursuing."