Related papers: Stellarators as a Fast Path to Fusion
Design and modeling of a stellarator fusion reactor is a multidisciplinary effort that requires a tight integration between simulation of highly nonlinear multi-physics and representation of non-planar complex geometries. The critical…
This paper describes a new and efficient method of defining an annular region of a curl-free magnetic field with specific physics and coil properties that can be used in stellarator design. Three statements define the importance: (1) Codes…
Nuclear fusion is an attractive source of energy because the fuel is abundant and it produces low levels of carbon emissions. The tokamak, which confines a plasma using magnetic fields, is the most mature nuclear fusion reactor concept.…
The optimal configuration choice between positive triangularity (PT) and negative triangularity (NT) tokamaks for fusion power plants hinges on navigating different operational constraints rather than achieving specific plasma performance…
This work presents the compact experimental negative triangularity reactor (CENTAUR), a low overnight cost, high-field tokamak, breakeven reactor design, achieving a predicted total fusion power of 40MW and scientific energy gain of 1.3.…
Stellarators confine fusion plasmas using three-dimensional magnetic fields composed of nested toroidal magnetic surfaces. In generic stellarators, trapped particles can drift across these surfaces and degrade plasma confinement. Certain…
Plasma disruptions represent a critical challenge for high-performance tokamak operations, as they can compromise machine integrity and reduce operational availability. Although future fusion devices essentially need to incorporate…
Fusion energy is often regarded as a long-term solution to the world's energy needs. However, even after solving the critical research challenges, engineering and materials science will still impose significant constraints on the…
Compared to present experiments, tokamak and stellarator reactors will be subject to higher heat loads, sputtering, erosion and subsequent coating, tritium retention, higher neutron fluxes, and a number of radiation effects. Additionally,…
Fusion energy, the process that uses the same reaction that powers the sun and the stars, offers the promise of virtually unlimited, carbon-free energy and is approaching reality. Recently, there's been a dramatic global increase in the…
Steering tokamak plasmas is commonly viewed as a way to avoid disruptions and runaway electrons. Plasma steering sounds as safe as driving to work but will be shown to more closely resemble driving at high speed through a dense fog on an…
Quasisymmetric stellarators are appealing intellectually and as fusion reactor candidates since the guiding center particle trajectories and neoclassical transport are isomorphic to those in a tokamak, implying good confinement. Previously,…
Development and operation of commercially viable fusion energy reactors such as tokamaks require accurate predictions of plasma dynamics from sparse, noisy, and incomplete sensors readings. The complexity of the underlying physics and the…
In the linear collisionless limit, a zonal potential perturbation in a toroidal plasma relaxes, in general, to a non-zero residual value. Expressions for the residual value in tokamak and stellarator geometries, and for arbitrary…
Magnetic confinement devices for nuclear fusion can be large and expensive. Compact stellarators are promising candidates for costreduction, but introduce new difficulties: confinement in smaller volumes requires higher magnetic field,…
Exhausting power from the hot fusion core to the plasma-facing components is one of the biggest challenges in fusion energy. The MAST Upgrade tokamak uniquely integrates strong containment of neutrals within the exhaust area (divertor) with…
The recent ITER re-baselining calls for new fusion-relevant research best carried out in a DT-capable tokamak device with similar technical choices. The present paper describes key issues that could be addressed in a Suitably Enhanced…
The Tokamak device is the most promising candidate for producing sustainable electric power by nuclear fusion. It is a torus-shaped device that confines plasma by a strong magnetic field. The development, design and control of the design…
Simulating gas flow within the divertor, which is a crucial component in nuclear fusion reactors, is essential for assessing and enhancing its design and performance. Traditional methods, such as the direct simulation Monte Carlo and the…
All high field superconductors producing magnetic fields above 12 T are brittle. Nevertheless, they will probably be the materials of choice in commercial tokamaks because the fusion power density in a tokamak scales as the fourth power of…