The Direct-Conversion Story
How turning ions straight into electricity moved from concept to the burner.
- Idea
- Ions → electricity directly
Direct energy conversion was explored decades ago for mirror machines, demonstrating that charged-particle energy can be recovered as electricity efficiently. Paired with low-neutron D–³He and modern engineering, it becomes the burner's defining feature.
The Kronos burner realises this long-standing idea.
Common questions
Direct energy conversion — collecting charged-particle energy as electricity instead of heat — dates to mid-20th-century mirror research. The burner revives it, recovering energy at about 0.70.
Because modern high-field magnets make the low-neutron D–³He burner viable, and its charged-particle energy is exactly what direct conversion captures — lifting plant efficiency to QE = 1.31.