Peak and sustained

The qualifier this site attaches to temperature and duration figures. A peak value is the highest reached, possibly for only milliseconds or microseconds; a sustained value was held for a stated length of time; an average is taken over a stated period. A pinch that reaches a high temperature for a few microseconds and a tokamak that holds a lower temperature for 48 seconds have done different things, and neither simply beats the other. 'Peak' is also used in a second sense, for the value at the hottest point in space, usually the centre of the plasma, rather than an average over its volume, so a source's own wording should be read closely.

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concept:peak-vs-sustained

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