Detection of High Tritium Activity on the Central Titanium Electrode of a Plasma Focus Device

A 2-kJ Mather plasma focus device is used to deuterate the top end surface (or tip) of its central titanium electrode to investigate the occurrence of anomalous nuclear reactions in the context of the “cold fusion” phenomenon. The tip of the central titanium electrode is found to develop at least a few tens of microcuries of tritium after several plasma focus discharges. Neither the tritium impurity level in the deuterium gas used in the experiment nor the tritium branch of the d-d reactions that are known to occur in plasma focus devices can account for such activity in the electrode. Anomalous nuclear reactions in the deuterated titanium lattice appear to be the most probable source of this high activity.