Sandia researchers have long supported DOE Fusion Energy Science efforts to make magnetic confinement fusion a practical source of electrical power. To develop this technology, Sandia’s work includes plasma-material interactions, boundary physics measurements at the DIII-D tokamak facility in San Diego, and fusion reactor blanket materials and the associated tritium fuel cycle.
Combustion research scientists also contribute to Sandia’s broader fusion energy effort. CRF researchers have applied uncertainty quantification to the modeling of plasma-material interactions and to the application of advanced laser diagnostics and mass spectrometry to low-temperature plasma phenomena. This work is also part of the Sandia Plasma Research Facility.