1900: A physics genius wandering around Europe

Chapter 689 The Supreme Meeting! A Groundbreaking Blueprint! The Dawn of the Pangu Project! Nuclear Chain Reaction! The Reactor!

Borneo, Institute of Physics.

Today should have been a weekend holiday.

However, a secret meeting was taking place in a conference room on the third floor.

Later historians even believed that:

"In some ways, this conference completely changed the course of human civilization."

The meeting was organized by Li Qiwei, and the participants included: Qian Wushi, Yu Yin, Qian Huzhou, Deng Huaining, He Yujie, Xia Yuanli, and Xu Qitai.

Without a doubt, these eight people were the core members of the Pangu Project.

At this moment, Li Qiwei sat in the main seat, while the others sat on his left and right sides.

He Yujie, Xia Yuanli, and Xu Qitai were deeply shaken.

Logically speaking, the dean wouldn't have called them together with Qian Wushi and the others for a meeting.

Unless it's a core high-level meeting, but today Hu Xizhong and several others were not present.

"What on earth is going on?"

Not only them, but even Qian Wushi and Yu Yin didn't know what was going on.

Professor Qian has been in seclusion for research recently and has paid little attention to the physics community.

Yu Yin also did not believe that today's meeting was about discussing artificially synthesized elements.

This shouldn't be a big deal for the dean.

Moreover, He Yujie and the other two also participated.

However, when the group saw the expressions on Qian Huzhou and Deng Huaining's faces, a thought struck them.

In front of these people, Li Qiwei remained calm. He didn't exchange pleasantries and went straight to the point:
"I've called all of you over here today."

"It's because the dawn of Project Pangu has appeared!"

boom!
Just two short sentences, and the whole audience was stunned!

He Yujie, Qian Wushi, and the others were shocked. No wonder the dean had called them all over.

Before everyone could process this bombshell news, Li Qiwei continued:

"Huaining and Huzhou, please share your latest research results with us."

Deng Huaining stood up, walked to the front of the crowd, and said:

"Ever since Fermi discovered transuranic elements, the world's top laboratories have been searching for them."

"Yu Yin used a cyclotron to study transuranic elements, while Huzhou and I used traditional methods."

Everyone nodded.

There was only one cyclotron, which was located at the Institute of Atomic Energy.

As the leading physics institute in Borneo, the Institute of Physics is naturally researching the latest topics.

Deng Huaining and Qian Huzhou used a traditional natural radioactive neutron source to conduct neutron bombardment experiments.

Both approaches have their own advantages.

"The bombardment experiments conducted by the Curies at the Radium Institute recently overturned everyone's views on transuranium."

"They discovered lanthanum, element number 57, in the bombardment products of uranium."

"Although this result has not yet been recognized by the academic community, it undoubtedly adds to the mystery surrounding the existence of transuranium."

"Huzhou and I replicated the experiments of the Curies, following their experimental parameters."

"The results show that the product does indeed resemble lanthanum."

"Since neither of us is good at chemical separation, it's difficult to give a definite answer."

"I think this at least proves one thing."

"That is neutron bombardment of uranium, which is definitely not as simple as just producing transuranic elements. It may indeed bombard uranium elements into fragments."

Wow!
Everyone was shocked!
Even though Professor Qian Wu hadn't been paying much attention to the physics community lately, he still knew about this.

Although He Yujie and his two colleagues were far removed from the front lines, they still had an understanding of this cutting-edge academic field.

But then they were puzzled.

What does this have to do with the Pangu Project?

Deng Huaining seemed to sense the doubts in everyone's minds.

He smiled and said:

"When I told the dean the news, he said that the dawn had broken."

"I only found out today that this is the dawn of the Pangu Project."

"As for why it is, I don't know either."

"We can only ask the dean to enlighten us."

Deng Huaining addressed the dean instead of the teacher because of the special occasion.

They discussed important matters as key members of the Borneo Academy of Sciences.

Swish!
Immediately, everyone turned to look at Li Qiwei.

That man they regarded as a spiritual totem!

The other party has been planning everything about the Pangu Project for decades.

That visionary perspective, ahead of its time, kept the people present awake at night for countless days and nights.

From passion to calm, and from doubt to determination.

It's impossible to say there wasn't any inner conflict.

However, the dean proved his unparalleled scientific prowess with one groundbreaking scientific achievement after another.

The other person's personal charm overcame the materialistic principles that held by the group!
If miracles have names, then it can only be Ridgway!
"Will today finally reveal the outcome?"

Li Qiwei looked at them and smiled slightly.

He was unaware that Szilard, far away in Europe, had already begun writing patents for chain reactions.

Today, he is going to present that earth-shattering conjecture in front of a few people!

“Cockraft in Cavendish achieved nuclear fission several years ago.”

"In lighter atomic nuclei, the strong force between nucleons is not strong, so they are easily bombarded into fragments."

"However, few people have noticed the difference in mass of the atomic nucleus before and after the bombardment."

"The former has a smaller mass than the latter, and the lost mass is released in the form of energy."

"This is the prototype of the weapon!"

Wow!
Everyone was shocked!

They really hadn't paid attention to this aspect.

However, Yu Yin quickly raised a question.

"Dean, but Professor Rutherford recently published an article that specifically discusses this issue."

"If you want nuclear fission to occur in an atomic nucleus, you must supply enough energy to the bombardment source."

"The energy input is definitely greater than the energy output by nuclear fission."

"This approach has no practical value."

Li Qiwei nodded with satisfaction.

The young men from back then have grown up, developed their own thoughts, and are no longer easily fooled.

However, instead of feeling defeated, he was actually quite happy.

Only by maintaining this spirit can they shoulder the great responsibility of the Pangu Project.

“That’s right, Professor Rutherford’s analysis makes a lot of sense.”

"But his conclusion contains a hidden condition!"

That means nuclear fission is a one-time event.

"What does that mean?"

"Take the neutron as an example."

"A neutron can only bombard one atomic nucleus at a time, causing it to fission and releasing energy."

"If you wanted to bombard all the atomic nuclei of a fist-sized piece of matter to cause fission, the number of neutrons needed would be astronomical."

"Moreover, the energy produced is less than the energy input, so it is meaningless."

"but!"

"There are exceptions to everything!"

"What if just one neutron could trigger fission in an entire mass of matter?"

"Then the output energy will be far greater than the input energy!"

boom!
The entire audience was shocked! None of the seven were fools; they immediately understood the idea.

When a neutron causes a nuclear fission in an atom, the energy released is definitely less than the original energy of the neutron.

But if this neutron can cause the fission of thousands upon thousands of atomic nuclei, then that's a different story!
But how could that be possible!
Master Qian Wu immediately said:

"Dean, the method you described is a bit like a snowball rolling downhill."

"That neutron is the initial little snowball, which keeps rolling, picking up more and more snow, and growing larger and larger."

"But there's only one neutron, how can there be more and more?"

The others all nodded.

They were equally puzzled.

Li Qiwei smiled slightly.

"The answer lies in transuranic elements."

“I had this idea after Elena published her paper.”

"The repeated experiments in Huzhou and Huaining further confirmed my hypothesis."

"If Elena's results are true, can uranium really undergo nuclear fission?"

Wow!
Everyone was startled again!
Yu Yin said incredulously:
"Dean, do you mean that transuranic elements do not exist?"

Li Qiwei waved his hand and said:
"Whether transuranic elements exist or not is irrelevant to my conjecture."

"As long as uranium nuclear fission truly exists, then my idea is feasible!"

At this moment, He Yujie asked:

"Dean, I still don't understand."

"Even if uranium nuclei can undergo nuclear fission, what's the difference between it and the fission of light atomic nuclei?"

"A single neutron can only cause one uranium nucleus to fission."

Li Qiwei looked at He Yujie with deep emotion.

The other party has been working diligently and conscientiously with me for almost thirty years without ever complaining.

Today, I can finally give the other party an explanation.

"Yujie, you're right."

"But there is a fundamental difference between uranium nuclei and those light atomic nuclei."

"Currently, there are three known isotopes of uranium: uranium-234, uranium-235, and uranium-238."

"Uranium is element number 92, so the number of neutrons in these three isotopes are 142, 143, and 146, respectively."

"So, what if such a possibility exists?"

"When a neutron bombards uranium, it causes nuclear fission, and in the process, two more neutrons are released."

"These two neutrons then bombard two more uranium nuclei, releasing four more neutrons."

"As this cycle continues, the number of neutrons increases, creating a chain reaction!"

"I call this process the nuclear chain reaction!"

"If this reaction is completed in an instant, it will release an enormous amount of energy!"

"Enough to destroy the heavens and the earth!"

hiss!
The group gasped, their faces filled with shock!

My heart was filled with a raging storm!

The concept of nuclear chain reaction completely overturned their worldview!
"Good heavens!"

"This idea is absolutely insane!"

"Once realized, a palm-sized amount of uranium will unleash unimaginable and terrifying energy."

To the astonishment of the others, Li Qiwei said:
"This is the core technology of Project Pangu!"

"I've drawn a few sketches specifically to help you understand."

After saying that, he handed a picture to each of the two people on the left and right.

Looking at the schematic diagram on the blueprint, everyone was deeply impressed.

The illustrations are very vivid and easy to understand.

After a neutron collides with a uranium nucleus, it breaks it into two fragments, releasing two more neutrons, which then continue to collide with the uranium nucleus.
The energy produced by the fission of a single atomic nucleus may be negligible, but the energy produced by the simultaneous explosion of countless atomic nuclei is absolutely earth-shattering!
"Is this the true nature of the Pangu Project?!"

For a moment, everyone's breathing became rapid, and their faces turned red with excitement.

It’s too shocking!

It’s amazing!

The dean's imagination has surpassed theirs!

Make the impossible possible!
If Szilard were here, he would be astonished and speechless.

"My God!"

"Why didn't I think of this method!"

Because he did not understand the properties of neutrons.

Sometimes, greatness lies in the seemingly insignificant details.

At this moment, Master Qian and the others were completely in awe of him.

The dean is amazing!
After an unknown amount of time, Yu Yin was the first to calm down.

He was the one among them who had the deepest understanding of nuclear physics.

Because of this understanding, he had new questions.

"Dean, as I understand it, this chain reaction is uncontrollable."

"But if we want to turn it into a weapon, we must conduct controlled research on it."

"That's contradictory."

"We might even accidentally trigger an uncontrollable reaction and blow up the experimental base."

Wow!
Everyone immediately calmed down.

Li Qiwei became increasingly satisfied.

The fact that Yu Yin can ask such a question means that he already has a sufficient understanding.

"Yu Yin, your question is excellent!"

"However, I have a solution."

"Do you remember the effect of slowing down neutrons that Fermi mentioned at the Bruce Conference?"

"We can use a moderator to slow down the neutrons, allowing them to undergo a controlled nuclear reaction."

"That way we can study it."

"I call this controlled nuclear chain reaction a 'nuclear reactor'!"

Wow!
The audience was stunned once again!

This idea is absolutely brilliant.

To study chain reactions, one can use moderators to slow down neutrons and achieve controlled nuclear fission; but if the goal is to weaponize them, then natural nuclear fission can be used directly.

Li Qiwei smiled slightly.

None of the problems with the Pangu Project were problems for him.

In real history, both Fermi and Compton participated in the Manhattan Project.

Their mission was to build nuclear reactors to provide a safe experimental environment for researching atomic bombs.

Fermi was in charge of the design and construction, Compton was in charge of management and secrecy, and a large number of physicists, including Szilard, worked day and night under Fermi's guidance.

Finally, the team built the first controlled nuclear reactor in human history, the famous "Chicago Reactor 1"!
It was because of this that Oppenheimer dared to lead the research on the atomic bomb.

Otherwise, as Yu Yin said, if you accidentally blow yourself up, who would dare to study it?
With the threat of nuclear war gone, nuclear reactors have become the best way to utilize nuclear energy.

Humanity has begun to truly master and utilize nuclear energy, officially entering a new level of civilization!
At this moment, the concepts of nuclear reactors and nuclear chain reactions proposed by Li Qiwei were no less significant to the people present than the Trisolarans teaching Earthlings the manufacturing process of water droplets.

That is a kind of guidance and enlightenment at the level of civilization.

Master Qian murmured:

"If I hear the truth in the morning, I can die in the evening."

Although what the dean is saying now is just speculation.

After all, whether uranium can undergo nuclear fission is still unknown.

But he had a strange feeling inside him.

"The Pangu Project will definitely be realized!"

(End of this chapter)