Is the "Neutron Bomb" related to EMP/EMS weapons ?

All nuclear weapons in fact, produce large EMPs when explode.

-- Dimitris Tzortzakakis,Greece Visit our website-now with aircondition!

The neutron bomb is designed to produce maximum neutron radiation with minmal blast, thus doing maximum damage to living things (presumably human enemy soldiers), but minumum damage to infrastructure.

IIRC its main purpose was to stop a soviet wave of tanks rolling over W-Germany, without destroying Germany's industry.

Wouter van Ooijen

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It is an example of what are termed "enhanced radiation" weapons. You can design for greater neutron flux, EM, blast, residual radiation... Article in Scientific American a few years ago on the subject.

On Sun, 11 Jan 2004 00:08:59 +0200, "Tzortzakakis Dimitrios" Gave us:

Yep. No way around it.

If not, what is the distinction ?

TIA

EMP is a secondary effect of the Gamma Radiation.

A high altitude, a high gamma radiation burst, causes the generation of 'Compton Electrons' in the upper atmosphere (around 30km from memory). It is these electrons, moving in the Geomagnetic field, that cause the EM radiation . As the Compton effect is a 'coherent cascading effect' the EM radiation is generated as a intense pulse with a rapid rise time, hence EMP. Having sad that, most of the energy is toward the low end of the spectrum.

EMP isn't the only concern with high altitude bursts- there is also the potential of longer term effects to the trapping of fission products in the Geomatnetic field, especially at high altitudes.

The mechanism 'works' at lower altitiudes but the effects are more localised- hence my comment.

Semiconductors can be damaged by the EMP and the various types radiation from the initial detonations.

Thanks to all for the info. So, it's the Gamma radiation that kills life and the EMP component destroys the CMOS IC's.

Can either operate independantly ? Or must they needs be acting in unison as in "coming from the same source" ?

One writer suggested the design parameters can be tailored to produce more or less of each.

TIA

Do you realize that by including the words "bomb", "neutron", and "weapons" in the title of your post that you have just moved up significantly as a potential threat in some government database?

Cheers, Perion

as did you, Perion!

Yipes! And I just did it again.

Perion

Don't worry about that. I am not afraid of the thought police. I insist on using an authentic email addy as well.

regards

p.s. Any Stateside readers able to access the Human Radiation Experiments at Los Alamos library website ? It has been restricted to foriegn readers since 911.