Life has become a rollercoaster of news about scientific breakthroughs driven by giant corporations, new technologies, 5G developments, 3D printers… Now, a 12-year-old boy has developed a nuclear fusion reactor for a school science fair, and his work was so impressive that it caught the attention of the FBI and Guinness World Records. The scientific development presented by Jackson Oswalt in Memphis, Tennessee, earned him the distinction of being the youngest person in the world to create such a device.
He spent months researching the nuclear fusion process and designing his equipment with extreme precision
This is the story of a young man with very specific interests who dedicated himself to researching his greatest passion, ultimately creating a remarkable project. Equipped with materials he acquired online and using limited resources, the young man managed to build a small, homemade nuclear reactor. At just 12 years old, the teenager discovered that his great skill in video games didn’t provide him with lasting excitement, according to sources close to him. According to Jackson himself, he spent months researching the nuclear fusion process and designing his equipment with extreme precision.
Oswalt said that he used to watch videos on YouTube to gather as much information as possible about the nuclear fusion
What is certain is that curiosity can lead people to achieve great things, as is the case with Oswalt. Driven by his curiosity and passion for science, the young man decided to embark on a project that many would consider impossible for someone his age. His curiosity to explore new things motivated him to focus on science, one of the most exciting branches of learning for many. He explains that he spent several days conducting advanced research and watching videos on YouTube to gather as much information as possible about the nuclear fusion he wanted to experiment with.
“The first step was to build a ‘demonstration fuser,’ a device that generates plasma but doesn’t achieve fusion”
And focusing on the specifics, even though Oswalt knew the fusion he had achieved wasn’t complete, he hadn’t expected his ingenious method to capture the attention of the entire exhibition. The young man reached a historic milestone by successfully fusing deuterium atoms, a type of heavy hydrogen, inside his reactor. Oswalt’s goal, since his attempts in his bedroom, had been to build a demonstration fuser to produce plasma. “The first step was to build a ‘demonstration fuser,’ a device that generates plasma but doesn’t achieve fusion. This required a vacuum chamber, a vacuum pump, and a neon sign transformer with a homemade AC-DC converter,” the young scientist explained.
Oswalt explains that he got almost all the parts on eBay: “The turbomolecular pump I got for a few hundred dollars was worth almost $15,000 new”
The fact is that this achievement made him the youngest person to successfully achieve nuclear fusion, surpassing even other prodigies who had attempted similar feats. The final details of the device were tweaked the day before the science fair, as Oswalt himself explains, “I ended up taking this version to my school’s science fair. I got it working the night before. In retrospect, it’s incredible that they let me in with it.” His work was verified by independent experts and subsequently recognized by Guinness World Records.
Finally, regarding the materials used, Oswalt explains in X that “I got almost all the parts on eBay. Liquidated military and research facilities were selling tons of valuable equipment cheaply, sometimes in perfect condition. The turbomolecular pump I got for a few hundred dollars was worth almost $15,000 new.” This feat is worth further discussion and analysis, as it represents a tremendously interesting development for a boy of just 12 years old who obtained the materials through online orders.