A couple of thoughts on a putative 'warm fusion' mechanism: > BTW this capture notion is very similar to that > proposed by Ed Storms.
1) Given the small, but proven, fusion rate of "warm fusion" - i.e. the Farnsworth Fusor, where the apparent threshold for fusion has been lowered from several MeV to several tens of KeV .... ... this is suggestive of the situation where the "capture" of 20-40 KeV electrons by bare deuterons can create enough "near-neutral" shrunken D, with at least a short lifetime, sufficient for real fusion to occur at far less energy than expected... ... and where: the "capture" mentioned above would be an alternative or "near-Millsean" explanation for the mechanics of that kind of fusion (i.e. highly redundant ground state). That is: if we are to believe the textbooks, and the past fifty years of teaching about the D+D fusion threshold (several MeV) for deuterium fusion, then a meaningful explanation (rather than a cavalier change of that value without explanation) is needed. 2) An ideal proof of an anomaly BUT in a non-plasma situation, would be a simple electron milliwatt beam impinging on a target containing free-protons or free-deuterons. 3) The most natural source of free protons in a target would be a strong acid. 4) An acid containing an element which is easily reacted with a normal neutron "might" be an effective target with which to offer a putative case for "highly redundant ground state capture". The beam would need to have about 2^2 or four times more voltage potential than the Fusor, to account for the lack of spherical convergence, but 100 KeV should suffice. ERGO - electrons from such a beam, impinging on a target of concentrated boric acid, could provide perhaps the simplest way possible with which to determine whether or not this kind of mechanism is at work. One would expect plenty of KeV gammas, and therefore one would need some kind of gamma spectroscopy, which unfortunately, few garage labs have handy. One would NOT expect MeV gammas from such a target (nor a build-up of lithium). Are there any to be found? Jones
