Weapons & delivery systems
Hydrogen Bomb
A nuclear weapon that derives most of its energy from nuclear fusion of hydrogen isotopes, ignited by a fission primary stage.
Also called thermonuclear or H-bombs, hydrogen bombs use a small fission bomb to compress and heat a fusion fuel (typically lithium deuteride) to fusion-ignition conditions. Yields are scalable to tens of megatons; the largest weapon ever tested, Tsar Bomba (1961), was a 50 Mt three-stage thermonuclear device. Modern strategic warheads are all thermonuclear.
Related terms
Thermonuclear Weapon
Synonym for hydrogen bomb — a nuclear weapon whose primary energy comes from fusion reactions.
Teller-Ulam Design
The two-stage design used in nearly all modern thermonuclear weapons, named after physicists Edward Teller and Stanislaw Ulam.
Nuclear Fusion
The combination of light atomic nuclei (typically deuterium and tritium) into heavier nuclei, releasing energy.