| ...D Particle Physics | |
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The discoveries that lead to the field of D-physics begin with an ambitious project to develop a better nuclear fusion reactor. Unlike traditional fusion reactions, which emit neutron radiation that can only be shielded by armor, the helium-3 reactor uses a "clean" fusion reaction that emits no neutrons: 2 Helium-3 + 1 Deuterium -> 2 Helium-4 + p-bar(proton) The reaction uses a rare isotope of helium known as helium-3, which fuses with deuterium atoms to form normal helium. The reaction also emits a proton, a charged particle than can be easily contained with magnetic fields. The one problem with this process is that helium-3 is extremely rare; Earth has very little helium in its atmosphere, and helium-3 makes up only 1/700,000 of this amount. Tangible amounts can be extracted from lunar soils, being deposited there by solar winds, but the helium-3 used today comes from aerostatic fractionation of Class J planetary atmospheres(Jupiter is a Class J planet). The D Particle In 2499, several starship engineers began noticing unusual electromagnetic wave effects within the impulse reactor that could not be explained by conventional fusion physics. Within a few years, they had identified the cause: a new elementary particle generated by the helium-3 reaction, which is named the D particle, for (D)elta EM wave particle. The D particle has a rest mass that is only 2 times that of the electron`s, the lightest particle known. Its speed at that time is 97% lightspeed and it also acts most like a wave at this point. As energy is added, its speed decreases, but its mass increases by a proportional amount; this curious effect causes the particle to come as near to a standstill as possible at 5.32 Giga-electron volts of energy. The D particle comes in two types, positive or negative. When scattered, the repulsive forces between the charged D particles cause them to spontaneously align into a regular lattice structure called an D field. The field itself forms because of the mutual attraction & repulsion of the particles; they align themselves into a structure held together by the rapid exchange of electromagnetic energy(photons), but do not contract due to electric repulsion forces between the positive and negative D particles. The D field creates an interference effect, called the Scatter effect, that blocks low-frequency electromagnetic waves such as radio, microwave and infrared; even low-frequency light is affected, though not blocked. The interference effect is due to the polarizing nature of EM waves passed between the D particles; the waves bouncing between then act as a virtual filter. The D field itself is as such not quite invisible when blocking red or orange-colored objects and can be detected by its effects more easily though. The art of D physics has one more trick up its sleeve. Due to the repulsive forces between positive and negative D-particles, large amounts of energy are required to compress an D field lattice. If enough energy is applied, and the D field sufficiently compressed, the D particles ultimately fuse into massive, electrically neutral negatrons. Theory- D Star In rare instances, a low mass star normally incapable of igniting a fusion reaction can nonetheless glow by the light of fused atoms. This is accomplished due to the influence of the D particle. When a small nebulae rich in the helium 3 isotope begins to collapse, random deuterium-he3 fusion events occur, since the temperature needed for such a fusion is magnitudes less than ordinary carbon-cycle fusion. The D particles generated in such a reaction go on to catalyze further reactions, eventually generating a ongoing fusion reaction in a star smaller than one that would normally qualify, anywhere from .5 to .9 of a normal solar mass. The D field generated by the particles further contain the reaction. As an interesting side note, the field generated that contains the D star can be almost any shape. This means that several unusually-shaped nebula that generate an anomalous amount of energy are in actually D stars, just not in the spherical shape dictated by gravity. Getting in and out of one of these stars is a straightforward matter; staying inside is not. The high levels of plasma, D-waves, infrared, microwave and radio waves are very dangerous to starships. These stars are rare for several reasons, several being given below. For example, in the E-capacitor(below), it is shown that a sufficiently powerful D field can compress positive and negative particles together into a neutral particle..negatrons in the case of D particles, neutrons in the case of protons and electrons. Over the course of hundreds of millions of years, the pressures inside the star build to the point where it is mostly composed of negatrons and neutronium, and the field has weakened so that it can no longer contain the matter. It explodes in a manner similar to a supernova, leaving behind a expanding gas cloud and a small black dwarf. The maximum theorectical age for a D star is 1.3 billion years. Another reason is the relative scarcity of Helium-3. Helium-3 comprises only 1\500,000 of the helium in the universe; for every 500,000 atoms of helium there is one of He3. This isotope is normally broken down inside stars fairly rapidly via fusion, and as such is only formed by supernovae. Gas Giants\Brown Dwarfs are more likely sources, and also more likely candidates for D Star formation. The final problem is simply that the nebulae often get converted to normal low-mass stars. The field that holds together the star also traps large amounts of energy in the lower-EM spectrum, not allowing it to radiate out; eventually conventional carbon-cycle fusion ingnites and totally annihilates the D star that was there, collapsing it fairly rapidly(100-430,000 years) and turning into a low-mass normal star. Practical Applications Improved Fusion- Instead of the conventional magnetic field, this improved version of the impulse reactor uses an D field to confine and compress the reactor fuel, triggering a fusion reaction. The D particles produced as a byproduct of the helium-3 fusion reaction are thus recycled to keep that reaction going. This super-efficient design is only a fifth as large as an equivalently powerful impulse reactor. Since it's made up of charged particles, the D field is unable to permeate through metal, water, the Earth's surface, or other electrically conductive materials; this automatically shapes it to the shape of the reactor. Energy Capacitor E-cap (a contraction of "energy capacitor"). This device stores D particles in a high-energy compressed state, so that only a small amount of additional energy is required to trigger their fusion into negatrons. The E-cap is charged by energy condensers, and then functions like a battery until its supply of particles is exhausted, at which point the weapon becomes useless. |
