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Progress in Tritium Containment and Radiation Protection Materials Research at the Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences

Recently, Associate Researcher Huo Zhipeng of the Fusion Reactor Blanket and Safety Research Center at the Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, together with his supervised master's students Zhang Jie and Chen Zuoyang, developed a class of flexible PbWO4-B4C reinforced silicone rubber composites with dual functions of tritium safety containment and nuclear radiation protection. The related research results were published in Journal of Materials Research and Technology. Future fusion facilities require comprehensive performance from radiation protection materials in tritium safety containment systems, including airtight sealing, flexibility for easy assembly and disassembly, and radiation shielding capability, for penetration hole sealing, post-maintenance, and high-flux neutron and γ-ray radiation protection. The research...

2026-08-21

Berkeley Lab Leads Development of Portable Active-Source Muon Imager

The U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and Ideon Technologies have received funding from the DOE's Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) to jointly develop a field-deployable active-source muon imaging technology through the Reliable Ore Characterization Using Cornerstone Sensing Technologies (ROCKS) program. The three-year project aims to enhance the detection and characterization of underground critical mineral resources. Image credit: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Muons are subatomic particles with strong penetrating capability. Previously, Ideon Technologies has used passive muons produced by cosmic rays in the atmosphere for ore body imaging in the mining sector, mapping mineral deposits and analyzing subsurface structures. However, passive muons primarily arrive from above, limiting detection angles; additionally, the natural flux is low—approximately one per square centimeter per minute—and imaging often requires days, weeks, or even months.

2026-08-20

Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory to Validate Spherical Tokamak Fusion Path with NSTX-U

The Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) is advancing research on the National Spherical Torus Experiment-Upgrade (NSTX-U), planning to use this largest spherical tokamak in the United States to assess the potential of compact tokamak configurations for future fusion power plants. The device is designed to become one of the most powerful spherical tokamaks in the world and will be used to study key issues such as high-temperature plasma confinement, heat transport, material performance, and real-time control. The image above shows the vacuum vessel and center column of the NSTX-U at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL). This device will help scientists determine the optimal shape for future fusion power plants...

2026-08-20

General Fusion Announces Business Update: LM26 Plasma Heated to Approximately 0.72 keV

General Fusion released a business update on August 18, disclosing its latest progress in fusion energy technology validation, commercial partnerships, and financing arrangements. The company went public on Nasdaq in July 2026 under the ticker symbol GFUZ. General Fusion stated that it entered the public market with approximately $150 million in cash following the completion of its business combination with Spring Valley Acquisition Corp. III. The funds include net transaction proceeds from private placement and trust capital, and are planned to support the Lawson Machine 26 (LM26) project and drive the completion of multiple...

2026-08-19

Indian research team uses supercomputer to track microscopic mechanisms of turbulence in dusty plasmas

Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology Jammu (IIT Jammu), in collaboration with the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (IIT Kanpur), used supercomputer simulations to study the origin of chaos in dusty plasmas. By tracking the motion of millions of individual particles, the study revealed how turbulent energy is transferred from large-scale vortices to microscopic thermal motion of particles, providing a new computational perspective for nuclear fusion plasma research and astrophysical process analysis. Plasma is often referred to as the fourth state of matter. Unlike solids, liquids, and gases, atoms in plasma are ionized, forming a system composed of positively charged ions and negatively charged electrons. When tiny solid dust particles enter the plasma, these particles absorb electrons and become negatively charged, subsequently undergoing complex interactions with surrounding particles to form dusty plasma.

2026-08-19

German research team achieves ultra-compact plasma photocathode injection

A research team from institutions including the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf in Germany has demonstrated an ultra-compact plasma photocathode injection scheme integrated into a hybrid plasma wakefield accelerator on the DRACO laser facility. The study utilized a 150 TW-class laser system to drive a laser wakefield accelerator (LWFA), generating high-peak-current electron beams, which in turn drove a subsequent particle beam wakefield accelerator (PWFA), completing the generation and acceleration of witness electron beams within millimeter-scale plasma structures. Plasma wakefield accelerators can produce accelerating fields far exceeding those of conventional radiofrequency linear accelerators, but how to obtain high-quality, high-brightness electron beams in compact devices...

2026-08-18

World's first laser plasma accelerator-driven high-resolution muon imaging experiment to launch in Romania

Ideon Technologies, a global subsurface detection muon tomography company, is participating in an international research consortium to conduct the world's first high-resolution muon imaging experiment driven entirely by a laser plasma accelerator. The experiment aims to use a compact accelerator to produce muon beams on demand for non-destructive high-resolution imaging, with applications targeting mineral production, critical infrastructure, cargo inspection, medical imaging, semiconductors, nuclear security, and space radiation testing. Consortium members include the University of Texas at Austin, the Extreme Light Infrastructure - Nuclear Physics (ELI-NP) facility team, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf, ELI-Beamlines, and Tau Systems.

2026-08-18

CNNC Innovation Multi-functional Surface Modification Device Shipped and Delivered

On August 14, 2026, the multi-functional surface modification device developed by CNNC Innovation (Chengdu) Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "CNNC Innovation") was officially shipped and delivered. This multi-functional surface modification device utilizes CNNC Innovation's proprietary high-energy metal ion source, gas ion source, and supporting single-stage pulsed magnetron source power supply and DC-superimposed pulsed bias power supply. It can perform ion implantation surface modification, metal surface alloying, non-metal surface metallization, auxiliary heating, and other process operations. It can simultaneously achieve gas ion source cleaning and auxiliary deposition treatment. Through the DC-superimposed pulsed bias power supply, directional plasma functionality can be realized, which accelerates deposition efficiency while effectively suppressing abnormal arc discharge and improving film quality.

2026-08-15

ITER Tokamak Advances Assembly in France, Fusion Experiment Targets 150 Million Degree Celsius Plasma

The ITER tokamak being assembled in southern France is one of the most closely watched large-scale experimental devices in global nuclear fusion research. The machine weighs approximately 23,000 tonnes in total and adopts a donut-shaped toroidal structure, using strong magnetic fields to confine high-temperature plasma, with the goal of replicating on Earth the conditions for fusion reactions that occur inside stars. Its plasma volume is approximately 830 cubic meters, far exceeding previous tokamak devices, and it is therefore expected to validate the key physics and engineering technologies required for future commercial fusion reactors. ITER adopts the toroidal tokamak structure because charged particles can move along toroidal paths under strong magnetic fields, thereby minimizing direct contact with the device's inner walls...

2026-08-14

Fuse Energy Technologies Corp. Reports FAETON-X Single-Shot D-D Fusion Neutron Yield of 1.27×10¹²

Fuse Energy Technologies Corp., headquartered in California, USA, announced on August 11 that its megajoule-class dense plasma focus device FAETON-X measured a peak neutron yield of (1.27±0.27)×10¹² neutrons per shot in a single D-D fusion experiment. The company stated that this is one of the highest single-shot fusion neutron yields publicly recorded by a commercial fusion enterprise, and the first to reach the 10¹² order of magnitude. FAETON-X is a megajoule-class pulsed-power fusion system developed by Fuse, designed as a single-pulse flash neutron source, serving pulsed-power fusion R&D and...

2026-08-12

Russian Scientists Propose Fast Calculation Method to Simulate Plasma Ion Parameters in Seconds

Researchers from the HSE University and the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology (MIPT) have developed an analytical method for calculating the behavior of heavy ions in helium under strong electric fields, which can accelerate the computation of ion mobility and ion–molecule reaction rates by thousands of times. The findings have been published in Physica Scripta. Plasma, composed of charged particles such as electrons, negative ions, and positive ions, is typically quasi-neutral and highly conductive. It exists not only in fluorescent lamps and welding arcs but is also used in controlled nuclear fusion devices such as tokamaks. Atmospheric plasma jets can also be applied to wound disinfection, work surface cleaning...

2026-08-11

Inner Mongolia Nuclear and Radiation Monitoring Center Organizes Standard Pre-Research Exchange Meeting

In accordance with the arrangement of the radiation monitoring standard pre-research project, the Inner Mongolia Nuclear and Radiation Monitoring Center (hereinafter referred to as the Inner Mongolia Center) undertakes the pre-research task for the standard "Determination of Total Uranium and Thorium in Soil and Sediment - Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry." To standardize the inter-laboratory method validation process and ensure the smooth progress of the validation work, the Inner Mongolia Center recently organized a standard pre-research method validation exchange meeting in Baotou City, attended by experts from the Radiation Environmental Monitoring Technical Center of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment for on-site guidance. Seven laboratories from across the country participated in this validation exchange meeting, including provincial-level radiation environmental monitoring institutions and laboratories in the nuclear industry, nuclear technology applications,...

2026-08-11

Two IPP studies reveal edge turbulence mechanisms in fusion plasmas from first principles

On August 10, 2026, two research teams at the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics (IPP) independently published findings that, for the first time, explain key phenomena in the extremely thin edge layer of fusion plasmas starting from fundamental physics equations. Both papers were published in Physical Review Letters, with one highlighted as an editor's suggestion. For stable operation of a fusion power plant, two requirements must be met simultaneously: on the one hand, the plasma at temperatures of around 100 million degrees Celsius must be effectively confined to achieve fusion ignition conditions; on the other hand, the generated heat must be distributed over a sufficiently large area to prevent damage to the device walls from excessive local heat loads. Whether this conflict can be resolved depends largely on a region only a few centimeters thick at the plasma edge.

2026-08-10

Russian University Proposes Rapid Simulation Method for Plasma Ion Parameters

Researchers from the HSE University and the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology have developed a simple analytical method for calculating the behavior of heavy ions in helium under strong electric fields. The findings have been published in Physica Scripta. Plasma is a gas composed of charged particles such as electrons, negative ions, and positive ions, typically quasi-neutral and highly conductive. In addition to fluorescent lamps and welding arcs, plasma also exists in controlled nuclear fusion devices such as tokamaks. Atmospheric plasma jets can also be used for wound disinfection, work surface cleaning, and improving crop seed performance. In plasma jet research, scientists...

2026-08-10

Harbin Fusion and Superconducting Industry Technology Innovation Alliance Established

On August 7, the inaugural meeting and first member assembly of the Harbin Fusion and Superconducting Industry Technology Innovation Alliance was held. Under the guidance of the Heilongjiang Provincial Department of Science and Technology and the Harbin Municipal Science and Technology Bureau, Harbin Institute of Technology (HIT) took the lead in establishing the Harbin Fusion and Superconducting Industry Technology Innovation Alliance. The alliance not only comprehensively integrates HIT's national-level advantageous research capabilities in fields such as robotics, advanced welding and joining, special composite materials, and extreme environment simulation, but also brings in local scientific innovation forces and industrial entities including Harbin Engineering University, the Heilongjiang Provincial Institute of Atomic Energy, and Harbin Electric Group. At the same time, it brings together the Institute of Plasma Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Southwest Institute of Physics of Nuclear Industry,...

2026-08-07