Feasibility of Making a Fusor for a Senior Project?

[ayoung]

Hello,

I'm currently on my last year at an undergraduate institute in California studying aerospace engineering, and I'm interested in using fusion power to propel spacecraft efficiently.

One device that I think can be used on future space missions would be the Polywell, if it ever goes through. Because I'm applying for graduate school, I'm interested in making a fusor to demonstrate my curiosity in inertial electrostatic confinement reactors.

However, my question would be: how long does it take to make a fusor?
I already have a vacuum chamber and high voltage power supplies that can be supplied by my Physics department.

My senior project would be around 200 hours of work. Would that be enough time to create a fusor and detect fusion using a bubble detector?

Thank you,

Alan

[JakeJHecla]

It'll work well as a senior project if you're dedicated. It will of course require a significant time investment in research, but it shouldn't be too big to tackle. While I think the probability of a fusion powered spacecraft is rather remote, the project could nonetheless show some of the concepts at work. I've put in about 275-300 hours of work on my own fusor and I too am using it as a senior project. Good luck!


Edited 10/3 for autocorrect-induced errors