Dune Technology - Atomics

Atomics is the term used to refer to nuclear weapons in the Dune universe. Like real-world nuclear weapons, atomics presumably derive their destructive force from nuclear reactions of fission or fusion, and Herbert notes that "radiation lingers" after their use. However, the author never delves into the specifics of the technology or explores in detail how it may have evolved by the time of Dune's far-future setting.

In the initial Dune novels, the Great Houses of the Landsraad own "family atomics" as heirlooms, keeping a secure, hidden cache as weapons of last resort in their wars. Though such possession is necessary to secure power, the use of atomics against humans violates the chief prohibition of the Great Convention, the "universal truce enforced under the power balance maintained by the Guild, the Great Houses, and the Imperium." Paul Atreides notes in Dune that "The language of the Great Convention is clear enough: Use of atomics against humans shall be cause for planetary obliteration." The atomics themselves act as a military deterrent — any House which violates the Great Convention flagrantly (such as using atomics openly in warfare) faces the possibility of massive retaliation from any number of the other Houses. As Paul notes via epigraph in Dune Messiah (1969), "any Family in my Empire could so deploy its atomics as to destroy the planetary bases of fifty or more other Families."

One type of atomic weapon is the stone burner, the explosion and radiation of which can be precisely adjusted depending on the desired effect. Stone burners emit "J-Rays", a form of radiation that has a tendency to destroy the eye tissue of anyone surviving the initial radiation blast. If of sufficient power, a stone burner can burn its way into the core of a planet, destroying it:

Paul remained silent, thinking what this weapon implied. Too much fuel in it and it'd cut its way into the planet's core. Dune's molten level lay deep, but the more dangerous for that. Such pressures released and out of control might split a planet, scattering lifeless bits and pieces through space.