Engineering cool new fusion solutions with liquid lithium

Ignited by growing public and private investment, the quest for fusion power is heating up ?? and research at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory is fueling important advancements toward developing fusion as a clean, safe and virtually limitless energy source.

One of our key goals is finding the best ways to protect the inside of a fusion vessel from the extreme heat of the plasma –– the fuel of fusion –– using liquid lithium. Researchers have found an engineering solution that would allow the liquid metal to flow around the base of the fusion vessel, using slats to maximize the heat it can capture on its journey. (Pretty cool, right?)

Our inaugural issue of Hot Science features stories on this and more, including research on 2D materials for next-generation semiconductors , an artificial intelligence project that is looking for plasmoids in outer space and a list of peer-reviewed journal articles published by our researchers in July.

Cool Discoveries

Creating loops of liquid lithium for fusion temperature control

Flowing liquid lithium over a series of slats could offer an ideal solution for drawing excess heat off of a fusing plasma. Read more .

Detecting defects in tomorrow’s technology: New research enhances our understanding of a likely candidate for next-generation computer chips

Researchers at our Lab and the University of Delaware are applying their expertise in physics, chemistry and computer modeling to create the next generation of computer chips, aiming for processes and materials that will produce chips with smaller features. Read more .

Machine learning could aid efforts to answer long-standing astrophysical questions

PPPL scientists have developed a technique using simulated data to train artificial intelligence programs to find plasma blobs known as plasmoids and learn more about the processes governing magnetic reconnection, which can damage satellites and the electrical grid. Read more .

Fast Physics

Kajal Shah , a strategic science initiative postdoctoral researcher at PPPL, explains how photons — or particles of light — are excellent messengers for fusion researchers.

Journal Articles

A collection of academic journal articles with first authors from PPPL published in July 2024.

Ben Bobell , Jan-Niklas Boyn , John Mark Martirez and Emily Carter (2024). Modeling Cicarbonate Formation in an Alkaline Solution with Multi-level Quantum Mechanics/Molecular Dynamics simulations . Molecular Physics.

Phillip Bonofiglo , Vasily Kiptily, Juan Francisco Rivero Rodriguez , Massimo Nocente , Mario Podesta, ?iga ?tancar , Micha? Poradziński , Victor Goloborodko, Sergei E Sharapov, Michael Fitzgerald, Remi Dumont , Jeronimo Garcia, David Keeling, Domenico Frigione, Luca Garzotti , Fernanda Rimini, Dirk Van Eester, Ernesto Lerche and Mikhail Maslov . (2024). Alpha particle loss measurements and analysis in JET DT plasmas . Nuclear Fusion.

Alexander V. Khrabrov, David. J. Smith and Igor Kaganovich (2024, July 2). Modeling the Low-Pressure High-Voltage Branch of the Paschen Curve for Hydrogen and Deuterium . IEEE Journals & Magazine | IEEE Xplore.

Alex LeViness , Samuel Lazerson , Anton Jansen van Vuuren, José Rueda Rueda, Juan Ayllon-Guerola, Sergey Bozhenkov, Dylan Corl , Robert Ellis , J. Galdon-Quiroga, Javier Garcia Dominguez , Manuel Garcia-Munoz , Javier Hidalgo Salaverri , K. Ogawa, Novimir Pablant and Jorge Segado Fernández (2024). Simulation of a scintillator-based fast ion loss detector for steady-state operation in Wendelstein 7-X (invited). Review of Scientific Instruments, 95(7).

Alex LeViness , Samuel Lazerson , Anton Jansen van Vuuren, José Rueda Rueda, Marc Beurskens , Sergey Bozhenkov, Kai Jakob Brunner , Oliver Ford, Golo Fuchert, Manuel Garcia-Munoz , Mitsutaka Isobe, Carsten Killer , Jens P Knauer, Kunihiro Ogawa, Novimir Pablant , Ekkehard Pasch, Peter Zsolt Poloskei and Thilo R. . (2024). Validation of a synthetic fast ion loss detector model for Wendelstein 7-X. Nuclear Fusion .

Ivan Romadanov , Yevgeny Raitses and Andrei Smolyakov. (2024). Wavelength modulation laser-induced fluorescence for plasma characterization . Review of Scientific Instruments Online/Review of Scientific Instruments, 95(7).

Pallavi trivedi , Julien Dominski , Choongseok Chang , Seung-Hoe Ku and Aaron Scheinberg . (2024). Core-edge modeling of gyrokinetic turbulence by coupling the delta-f and total-f models in the XGC code . Physics of Plasmas, 31(7).

Joseph Vella , Qinzhen Hao , Mahmoud A I Elgarhy, Vincent M Donnelly, and David B Graves (2024). A Transient Site Balance Model for Atomic Layer Etching . Plasma Sources Science and Technology, 33(7).

Hongxuan Zhu , Tim Stoltzfus-Dueck , Robert Hager , Seung-Hoe Ku , and Choongseok Chang (2024). Intrinsic Toroidal Rotation Driven by Turbulent and Neoclassical Processes in Tokamak Plasmas from Global Gyrokinetic Simulations. Physical Review Letters, 133(2).

PPPL is mastering the art of using plasma — the fourth state of matter — to solve some of the world's toughest science and technology challenges. Nestled on 美国普林斯顿大学 's Forrestal Campus in Plainsboro, New Jersey, our research ignites innovation in a range of applications including fusion energy, nanoscale fabrication, quantum materials and devices, and sustainability science. The University manages the Laboratory for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) ’s Office of Science, which is the nation’s single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences. Feel the heat at https://energy.gov/science and?https://www.pppl.gov . ?