FORCE FIELDS 9
shuttle bay, containing small shuttle craft, from the vacuum of outer
space. Not only is it a clever way to save money on props, but it is a device that is possible.
The plasma window was invented by physicist Ady Herschcovitch
in 1995 at the Brookhaven National Laboratory in Long Island, New
York. He developed it to solve the problem of how to weld metals using
electron beams. A welder's acetylene torch uses a blast of hot gas to
melt and then weld metal pieces together. But a beam of electrons can
weld metals faster, cleaner, and more cheaply than ordinary methods.
The problem with electron beam welding, however, is that it needs to
be done in a vacuum. This requirement is quite inconvenient, because
it means creating a vacuum box that may be as big as an entire room.
Dr. Herschcovitch invented the plasma window to solve this problem. Only 3 feet high and less than 1 foot in diameter, the plasma window heats gas to 12,000°F, creating a plasma that is trapped by electric
and magnetic fields. These particles exert pressure, as in any gas,
which prevents air from rushing into the vacuum chamber, thus separating air from the vacuum. (When one uses argon gas in the plasma
window, it glows blue, like the force field in Star Trek)
The plasma window has wide applications for space travel and industry. Many times, manufacturing processes need a vacuum to perform microfabrication and dry etching for industrial purposes, but
working in a vacuum can be expensive. But with the plasma window
one can cheaply contain a vacuum with the flick of a button.
But can the plasma window also be used as an impenetrable
shield? Can it withstand a blast from a cannon? In the future, one can
imagine a plasma window of much greater power and temperature,
sufficient to damage or vaporize incoming projectiles. But to create a
more realistic force field, like that found in science fiction, one would
need a combination of several technologies stacked in layers. Each
layer might not be strong enough alone to stop a cannon ball, but the
combination might suffice.
The outer layer could be a supercharged plasma window, heated
to temperatures high enough to vaporize metals. A second layer could
be a curtain of high-energy laser beams. This curtain, containing thou-
shuttle bay, containing small shuttle craft, from the vacuum of outer
space. Not only is it a clever way to save money on props, but it is a device that is possible.
The plasma window was invented by physicist Ady Herschcovitch
in 1995 at the Brookhaven National Laboratory in Long Island, New
York. He developed it to solve the problem of how to weld metals using
electron beams. A welder's acetylene torch uses a blast of hot gas to
melt and then weld metal pieces together. But a beam of electrons can
weld metals faster, cleaner, and more cheaply than ordinary methods.
The problem with electron beam welding, however, is that it needs to
be done in a vacuum. This requirement is quite inconvenient, because
it means creating a vacuum box that may be as big as an entire room.
Dr. Herschcovitch invented the plasma window to solve this problem. Only 3 feet high and less than 1 foot in diameter, the plasma window heats gas to 12,000°F, creating a plasma that is trapped by electric
and magnetic fields. These particles exert pressure, as in any gas,
which prevents air from rushing into the vacuum chamber, thus separating air from the vacuum. (When one uses argon gas in the plasma
window, it glows blue, like the force field in Star Trek)
The plasma window has wide applications for space travel and industry. Many times, manufacturing processes need a vacuum to perform microfabrication and dry etching for industrial purposes, but
working in a vacuum can be expensive. But with the plasma window
one can cheaply contain a vacuum with the flick of a button.
But can the plasma window also be used as an impenetrable
shield? Can it withstand a blast from a cannon? In the future, one can
imagine a plasma window of much greater power and temperature,
sufficient to damage or vaporize incoming projectiles. But to create a
more realistic force field, like that found in science fiction, one would
need a combination of several technologies stacked in layers. Each
layer might not be strong enough alone to stop a cannon ball, but the
combination might suffice.
The outer layer could be a supercharged plasma window, heated
to temperatures high enough to vaporize metals. A second layer could
be a curtain of high-energy laser beams. This curtain, containing thou-