Talk-Polywell.org

[Well, that's one possible name. I'll let Marketing* worry about that.]

Possible plasma tweaker, alpha collector, resonance tuner, or...?

http://demonstrations.wolfram.com/Hyper ... edSurface/

http://www.google.com/patents/about?id= ... dq=3534908
http://www.google.com/patents/about?id= ... dq=3513474
http://www.google.com/patents/about?id= ... dq=3047717

Think of one of the end rings as being near a magrid coil (or maybe being the magrid coil case itself) and the other end ring (with possibly different diameter) as being closer to the vacuum chamber wall, both rings aligned with the coil axis. The outer end ring is rotatable about, and translatable along, the coil axis. Current flows in the wires (or rods, curved beams, ..., with conducting ball-joint ends) that connect the end rings. Various current paths are possible (straight through, VASIMR-style helicon, staggered loops, ...).

* http://www.hulu.com/watch/19046/saturda ... bassomatic

[OK, Marketing, try "Fluxomatic" then. Do NOT use the blender.]

IF
both end rings are same-diameter coils, wound in the same direction and spaced fairly close, like a Helmholz coil, or closer
AND
the conducting links between the end rings are insulated to avoid plasma shorts and comprise a separate "helicon antenna"*, for lack of a better term, with adjustable geometry, the N links tracing out a family of one-sheeted hyperboloids ranging from cylinder to near-cone**
AND
the end coils are close enough to each other that the hyperboloid is magnetically shielded
AND
the "helicon" still produces useful effects when that close to the strong end coil fields
THEN

Maybe the twin-coil/adjustable-hyperboloid assembly would be usable as a magrid component, for seeing what happens with a research Polywell when an "RF twist" is added to one or all facets of the magrid.

* http://www.ornl.gov/sci/fed/Technology/ ... elicon.htm
** [Edit] A near-cone shape is probably not attainable for a "helicon" short enough to be enclosed by the magnetic envelope of the two end coils.

Something like this dual-coil magrid picture Indrek provided



at

viewtopic.php?t=506&postdays=0&postorde ... 7&start=15

but with current flowing in the SAME direction for each coil in a pair, and insulation-covered conducting links between the two coils forming a hyperboloidal helicon, the outer coils being rotatable to adjust the helicon geometry as it's being driven with RF at tens of MHz.

DeltaV wrote:"...the conducting links between the end rings are insulated to avoid plasma shorts and comprise a separate "helicon antenna"..."

For clarity:
The "helicon" circuit(s) generally assumed to be completely separate from the coil circuits and the conductive coil casings. A somewhat challenging design problem if insulated ball joints are involved, but not all that difficult. Tough ceramic probably needed to withstand the heat.

The hyperboloid links could also serve as part of the support structure for the entire magrid (assuming intercoil nubs are still used). Supports that connect the outer coils to the vacuum chamber wall would have to extend/retract while rotating. Not difficult. This would also work if the outer coils have a different diameter than the inner coils, e.g., a larger diameter to keep them within the magrid "shadow".