Startrek Warp Core: Exploring Matter-Antimatter Collision

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In summary, the "Startrek" warp core works on the physical phenomenon of matter collides with antimatter and energy is created. But as the author was taught, a collision between an electron and a positron will produce two, very energetic, gamma-photons. How can anyone use this energy currently? The problem is the energy required to produce the positron and focus it to collide with the similarly focussed electron. They do this in accelerators, for example the Large Electron-Positron Accelerator (LEP) used this approach, and was the source of many discoveries. However, as a source of useful energy, it doesn't work at present.
  • #1
Ahmes
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"Startrek" warp core

Hello,
The "Startrek" warp core works on the real physical phenomenon of matter collides with antimatter and energy is created.
But as I was taught, a collision between an electron and a positron will produce two, very energetic, gamma-photons. how can anyone use (nowadays) these gamma rays? If this energy was usable, wouldn't they make some use of that in nuclear reactors instead of blocking it behind thick lead walls?
 
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  • #2
The problem is the energy required to produce the positron and focus it to collide with the similarly focussed electron. They do this in accelerators, for example the Large Electron-Positron accelerateor (LEP) used this approach, and was the source of many discoveries. But as a source of useful energy it doesn't work.
 
  • #3
http://www.space.com/images/h_laser_levan_02.jpg [Broken]

Riding on a beam of light, future passenger-carrying spacecraft will look far different than clunky vehicles used today. Test shots of a sub-scale version of this single-seater laser-boosted lightcraft have already been carried out at White Sands, New Mexico test range. CREDIT: Ron Levan/RPI

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/3607020/
 
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  • #4
Antihydrogen Can Be Used

Antihydrogen has certainly be suggested (and experimented with) as a future source of space-propulsion.
The ONLY constraints on using such a fuel, at present, is the very high cost in producing the fuel.
 
  • #5
Nommos Prime (Dogon) said:
Antihydrogen has certainly be suggested (and experimented with) as a future source of space-propulsion.
The ONLY constraints on using such a fuel, at present, is the very high cost in producing the fuel.


..and containing it. Can't encounter ordinary matter or you lose all that energy, suddenly! And since antihydrogen is electrically neutral, you can't use EM to confine it either.

Also this would be a source of energy, but probably not reaction mass. The reaction mass limitations for going anywhere outside the solar system in a human lifetime are so great that the rocket principle just doesn't look feasible. Thus you are forced to look for workable metric engineering solutions.
 
  • #6
Containment Not That Difficult...

I consider the "Containment" problem to be a minor one.
Read this and tell me what you think?

From;
"HIGH PERFORMANCE INERTIAL CONFINEMENT FUSION (ICF) PROPULSION SYSTEMS FOR INTERSTELLAR MISSIONS."
http://www.interstellarsociety.org/PROP4.HTM [Broken]

No worries...

If you don't consider this approach feasible, there's a few other ones I reckon "are close to the money".
 
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  • #7
Inertial confinement isn't a way to confine antihydrogen, it's a way to PRODUCE antiprotons. Closely related to inertial confinement fusion, which is an ongoing research enterprise, you see from the paper that it compresses a pellet of fissile material with EM beams to produce a flood of antiprotons. Now anitprotons don't have the problems I mentioned with antihydrogen. Since they are charged, they can be controlled with electric or magnetic fields.

You still have the basic rocket problem though. Even if you have total conversion of matter into energy and your reaction is photons - this is the theoretical maximum of the rocket principle - you still can't get up to a healthy enough fraction of c to make an interstellar trip in a human lifetime. To get to Alpha Centauri at .1c would take 43 years, without braking, but to get to .1c would require a Moon-sized chunk of matter to convert.
 
  • #8
quick question... NA22 sodium isotope produces positrons by simply sitting... and they have an electric charge... why not positrons for some type of antimatter reactor? besides, you shouldn't use the antimatter reaction for propulsion purposes, just use it for an energy to create a means of propulsion... eh?
 
  • #9


but woudnt you lose energy in the long run, the amount of energy needed to make even nearly enough anti- particles to use as a 100% efficient energy source would be greater then the energy got out, as energy is wasted in heat and light
 
  • #10


7 year old thread.
 

1. What is a matter-antimatter collision in the context of Star Trek?

In the Star Trek universe, a matter-antimatter collision refers to the process of combining equal amounts of matter and antimatter in a controlled manner to produce a massive amount of energy. This energy is used to power the starships and other advanced technologies in the series.

2. How does the warp core in Star Trek work?

The warp core in Star Trek works by utilizing the energy produced from matter-antimatter collisions to power the ship's warp drive. The collisions take place within a specialized chamber and the resulting energy is harnessed and directed to the engines, allowing the ship to travel at faster-than-light speeds.

3. Is a matter-antimatter collision possible in real life?

Yes, a matter-antimatter collision is possible in real life. Scientists have been able to create and study antimatter particles in particle accelerators. However, controlling and harnessing the energy produced from such collisions is currently beyond our technological capabilities.

4. What are the potential dangers of a matter-antimatter collision?

The potential dangers of a matter-antimatter collision include the release of a massive amount of energy in a short period of time, which could result in an explosion. Additionally, if the antimatter is not properly contained, it could react with the surrounding matter and cause further destruction.

5. Could a warp core be used as a clean energy source?

In theory, a warp core could be used as a clean energy source as it produces a large amount of energy without generating any harmful byproducts. However, the technology to safely control and harness the energy from matter-antimatter collisions is currently not available, making it purely science fiction at this point in time.

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