Beta is a number, and I know what it is, the problem is, do you know what it is. You said no machine can ever have beta greater than 1, and that's a false statement. So I'm asking you how do you define beta, which you did, that solves some of the issues, but not entirely, because as I said before, different machines care about different things, the number beta means very little or very different things in various machines, but you can still calculate it.
Your understanding of beta not able to be greater than 1 is true only in certain classes of machines, within those classes of machines, they hold comparative meanings. While in some other machines, beta means nothing or it means very different things. I'm simply pointing out your statement is false at worst and not really true at best. Even within magnetic confinement, very different machines, their betas shouldnt be compared.
I think polywell's beta is calculated at the Wiffleball edge, which is somewhat unfair if compared to the beta of donut machines is calculated at the plasma edge, but the field is weaker at the plasma edge of donut machines, while the field at the Wiffleball edge is strong, due to field compression.
I dont know how you dont know what inertial confinement fusion is, it is second most mainstream approach to fusion energy.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inertial_c ... ent_fusion
Names are names, the name inertial confinement fusion isnt every good, and the name is like that because of history; it was just named that to begin with. I dont really want to have to explain to you about silly things like names, but okay.
What does inertial confinement mean? It means using the motion of the plasma itself to perform the confinement, but other approaches have also use motion to perform confinement too. The name isnt very clear on what exactly are we talking about. Beam compression on the other hand (which by the way, every single plasma physicist I've talked to knows what I'm talking about when I say beam compression, I dont know why you dont, but then again, you're not a plasma physicist) correctly describes the type of machine in the discussion. All of them inject some form of plasma in order to compress and reach fusion energy levels and density.
Most of my teachers, after I explain to them why I call ICF beam compression, understand why I call it that. They may not use it themselves, but they recognize the incorrect naming, which is just how it is.
I hope you understand from this post that:
1. beta is a number that can be greater than 1 depending on the definition, the machine, and other factors. Even after you more strictly define what beta is, you still run into the problem of machine difference, even if you only consider a class of machines, such as magnetic confinement machines, you still run into issues with differences of design.
2. Names are just names, but the way the term ICF came about is silly and what the terms actually would encompass a greater set of machines, which isnt many of those machines arent what we're talking about. The way to deal with this is to provide a more precise term.
3. Look I'm grateful you let me know that you can inject neutrals into a plasma in a donut machine to generate flow (which btw, it kinda only generate flow and not electric current, very different things), which actually you can do in a stellarator too, or actually any donut machine.
But then again, you didnt know stellarators can have bootstrap current, the more we know huh?
Throwing my life away for this whole Fusion mess.