Some ideas are so complex, intriguing, and important that scientists commit their careers to the research, fully understanding that advances will be incremental over many years and that it may be for other generations of scientists to see a technology implemented. 

Harnessing fusion as an energy source—the idea of confining hot plasma like that found in the sun long enough to extract energy from it—is such an idea.  It evolved when scientists noted that as two light atomic nuclei fuse, a small amount of mass is converted into a large amount of energy.   The science to accomplish that in a usable form intrigued George Miley early in his career.

"Energy from fusion is cleaner, safer, and virtually inexhaustible compared with other sources," he said, "but the big question is when.  We're decades away from fusion energy, but it still looks very promising."

Miley joined the Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering Department in 1961.  When he received the 1995 Edward Teller Medal from the American Nuclear Society and the International Conference on Laser Interactivity, he aptly titled his acceptance lecture, Patience and Optimism, "feeling that these characteristics have been important not only to my own career, but that they must also be the cornerstone of mankind's development of fusion energy."

Over the years, he has worked on a variety of nuclear engineering problems.  Among the first to begin investigating the novel idea of nuclear-pumped lasers (NPLs) in the 1960s, he made significant contributions to the field.  In addition, his talent for breaking a large problem into several small parts allowed him to identify important "tangents" to the bigger problem of fusion energy.

One of those tangents was the idea of using fusion plasma to produce neutrons for industrial applications.  He developed a process for making small inertial electrostatic confinement devices (IECs) to serve as portable fusion neutron sources.  The university licensed the process to an automobile manufacturer to commercialize, and it was soon put to use on assembly lines to probe materials for impurities.  When neutrons hit the materials, characteristic gamma rays are emitted that provide information about the composition.

"It's great to have small, near-term successes on the way to the bigger one," Miley said.

Although the IEC technique works well, the device is limited to applications that can employ a relatively weak source intensity.  Miley is tackling that problem by investigating ways to increase the neutron emission rate.  If researchers can increase the source rate by two or three times, the technology would become practical and attractive for medical isotope production and other medical radiation treatments.  Other potential applications include using neutrons for such tasks as locating oil for drilling, making inspections of luggage at airports, and searching for cracks in metals. 

To bring research such as the IECs closer to commercial application, Miley has found it necessary to conduct more applied research and mix some business with academics. Faculty businesses are common today, but they were unusual when he made plans for his first business.  Starting a second company now, he has found the climate more receptive.

"The U of I was a little conservative compared to the Stanford and MIT spirit of doing things, but that's changing," he said.  "It's a difficult stretch to be both a business person as well as a scientific person, but the changing attitude at the U of I allowed me to make important progress."

Another promising use for IECs is for future space propulsion.  Funded in part by NASA, Miley and aeronautical engineer Rodney Burton are researching the potential for using IEC fusion on deep space missions.  One of the key appeals of this approach is the large amount of energy delivered by the small, lightweight mass of the IEC reactor and fusion fuel.

"On paper, fusion is one of the leading candidates for space propulsion," Miley said.  "The fusion devices envisioned are way beyond where we are now, but it's a challenging and important fusion problem that we can tackle one small step at a time."

Not one to back away from an intriguing nuclear engineering problem, Miley also is working on a version of "cold fusion."  This research uses thin-film electrodes and has yielded results interesting enough to keep his attention.  Because there are important differences between this concept and the original cold fusion, he terms his work as "dealing with 'low-energy nuclear reactions' (LENRs)."

"The field is so polarized by the bad name given to it by the original 'cold fusion' episode years ago that it's difficult to talk about it without people becoming emotional—most scientists are either 'for it' or 'against it.'  Thus, it's a very difficult field to work in," Miley said.  "One advantage of being a tenured faculty member, however, is that I can work on unpopular or controversial ideas that might be important to society in the long run, ideas that might have a significant impact on future energy independence for the United States. 

"LENR would be revolutionary if it works," he added.  "That makes it worth putting an intense effort into finding out."

Although his research often garners the attention, Miley considers himself to be a "traditional" faculty member.  Teaching, research, and service are intricately woven together in the pattern of his days.

"I love teaching in the classroom and through research," he said.  "Our students are extraordinary, and they go on to be outstanding professionals.  It's a privilege to be part of that."

Miley recently stepped down as editor of the journal, Fusion Technology Journal that he founded in 1981, but he continues to serve as editor of the Journal of Laser and Particle Beams and the Journal of Plasma Physics.  He is the author of some of the must-read articles and books of his field, including Direct Conversion of Nuclear Radiation Energy and Fusion Energy Conversion, and is editor of the nuclear energy section in the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers'Handbook for Electrical Engineers.

—Tina M. Prow