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The detonation is caused by bringing together a "critical mass" of radioactive material (the term "critical mass" refers to that quantity of material sufficient for a self-sustaining fission reaction).

What triggers this can vary, depending on the intended usage of the bomb itself. It may be set with a barometric or proximity fuze to detonate in the air, an impact fuze to detonate upon, well, impact, a timed fuze to detonate at a particular pre-set instant, or any of the various other types of artillery fuzes.

The hard part is holding that critical mass together long enough for it to fully fission. The warhead tends to blow apart due to prompt dispersal, causing incomplete detonation. High technology is used to form an focused, explosive, compression that will last long enough, even under the intense pressures of super prompt criticality, to make the most of the weapon.

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