The Future of Frontier
Plasma Science
Talk and Chat series 2021
Prof. Jack Hare,
Nuclear Enigeering Department, MIT
May 3rd, 2021
2 PM EDT
Webminar to watch: New Frontiers in Magnetic Reconnection Experiments using Pulsed-Power
Magnetic reconnection is a fundamental process in plasma physics, which breaks and reforms magnetic field lines, changing their topology and dissipating magnetic energy as heat and kinetic energy. We use pulsed-power based reconnection experiments to study the effects such as the plasmoid instability and strong radiative cooling on the reconnection process. Alongside experiments carried out on MAGPIE at Imperial College London, I will present proposed experiments on the new PUFFIN facility at MIT, and at the Z Machine at Sandia.
Prof. Jon Zuegel, University of Rochester
Prof. Louise Willingale, University of Michigan
March 22nd, 2021
4PM EDT
A Multi-Petawatt Physics Prioritization (MP3) Workshop in late 2021 (date and location TBD) will bring together scientific communities to focus on promising new science enabled by a new generation of ultra-intense and powerful lasers. The workshop and a series of virtual working group meetings leading to it will establish and develop networks of researchers who will recommend ways to coordinate research and broaden access to state-of-the-art facilities, diagnostics, and computational tools for high-intensity laser-based research.
Prof. Howard Milchberg, University of Maryland
February 8th, 2021
4PM EST
Webminar avaialable to watch: Development of metre-scale low density plasma waveguides
I will describe our recent experiments demonstrating high intensity optical guiding in meter-scale low density plasma waveguides. These waveguides may be crucial elements of future high repetition rate 10 GeV laser plasma accelerator stages.
Prof. Troy Carter (UCLA)
January 25th 2021
4PM EST
Webminar avaiable to watch at:Powering the Future: Fusion & Plasmas, the FESAC Long Range Planning Report
A long-range plan has been created to accelerate the development of fusion energy and advance plasma science. This plan is based on substantial input from the research community, which conveyed a wealth of creative ideas and its passion to accelerate fusion energy development and advance plasma science over an intensive two-year process. The FESAC Long Range Planning Report provides a decade-long vision for the field of fusion energy and plasma science, presenting a path to a promising future of new scientific discoveries, industrial applications, and ultimately the timely delivery of fusion energy.