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Q&A

Could a photonic engine actually work?

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I have a very specific aesthetic in mind for my science-fantasy setting, technology is largely pneumatipunk supplemented with weired phonotic devices;for "reason" there are few electrical devices in use. An engine that uses focused light for thrust fits my aesthetic perfectly.

However I was wondering if a photonic thruster would actually work?

Why?

Because I'd rather not "handwave" if a real world solution actually exists.

Ion propulsion works , thus we've got proof of particle thrust, the question is could something similar be done with photons. If not photons, what if light was focused into something more substantial would that put a photon thrust in the realm of plasma thruster.

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This post was sourced from https://worldbuilding.stackexchange.com/q/56975. It is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

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