How do charged environments affect low-energy fusion rates? Screening effects in laser-induced non-neutral plasmas

Globally charged environments can modify the rates of nuclear reactions at the energies relevant for nuclear fusion energy production. This issue was addressed using the screening potential approach, deriving approximate analytical results for some scenarios of interest. The developed model predicts that fusion is hindered for reactions between thermal nuclei, while an enhancement is expected for secondary reactions and cluster Coulomb explosion beam-target reactions.