Researchers directly simulate the fusion of oxygen and carbon nuclei

The fusion of two nuclei is a complex process influenced by many factors. These factors include not only the relative energy and angular momentum of the two nuclei, but also how their structures evolve as they collide. The outcome of the collisions is dramatically impacted by the quantum nature of the nuclei. The best way to handle the underlying complexities is to directly simulate how the nuclei evolve as they collide, though this constitutes a massive computational effort.