The DC Bus & Direct-Conversion Output
Direct energy conversion produces a DC intermediate that simplifies storage integration and grid-forming control.
From particles to a DC link
The tandem-mirror burner converts most of its output directly: escaping charged particles are decelerated across grid stages and collected, producing direct current without a heat engine. That DC intermediate — the DC bus or DC link — is where storage attaches and from which the output inverter synthesises AC for the installation.
Why a DC link is convenient
A DC intermediate is a natural aggregation point. Batteries and other DC storage connect to it without an extra conversion stage. The output inverter can be controlled independently of the plasma, so grid-forming behaviour, power quality, and ride-through are set by the electronics rather than by machine dynamics. Multiple collectors and units can be paralleled on the DC side.
- Charged-particle energy collected as DC (no steam cycle)
- Storage attaches to the DC link directly
- Output inverter decoupled from plasma dynamics
- Clean point to parallel collectors and units
The residual thermal path
Not all energy is converted directly: neutron heating (from the 5.44% neutron fraction) and system losses appear as heat that must be rejected. Direct conversion reduces but does not eliminate the thermal path, so the plant still has a heat-rejection system alongside the electrical one.
This is design-stage architecture; conversion and conditioning performance are objectives for the test burner, and the DC link is presented here for what it does structurally — aggregate collectors, host storage, and decouple the plasma from the installation bus. Isolating the plasma from the load through the DC link is also a resilience feature: a disturbance on the installation bus is buffered by the link and storage rather than being fed straight back into the machine.