The Technologies Fueling the Future of Fusion

Plasma is the fourth state of matter and the heart of the fusion process. Understanding how this hot soup of particles behaves is crucial, but direct observation is nearly impossible. Instead, much like using a digital wind tunnel to design a more aerodynamic plane, researchers turn to simulations to design successful and efficient fusion systems.

Experts at Berkeley Lab have developed advanced codes - such as WarpX, which won one of the highest honors in supercomputing, the Gordon Bell Prize - and innovative computational techniques that enable faster, more precise, and more cost-effective modeling of fusion. Many of those simulations run on systems at the National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC), and the data is shared with other facilities through the high-performance Energy Sciences Network (ESnet), both managed by Berkeley Lab. Researchers running local and remote fusion experiments can also connect to NERSC systems through ESnet, an example of Integrated Research Infrastructure. Scientists can use that computing power to build virtual models known as "digital twins," which use real experimental data to simulate and predict what happens next.