First plasma marks major milestone in UW–Madison fusion energy research

Posted on July 18, 2024

a cyan blue cloud of light illuminates the majority of the shot

A fusion device at the University of Wisconsin–Madison generated plasma for the first time Monday, opening a door to making the highly anticipated, carbon-free energy source a reality.

Over the past four years, a team of UW–Madison physicists and engineers has been constructing and testing the fusion energy device, known as WHAM (Wisconsin HTS Axisymmetric Mirror) in UW’s Physical Sciences Lab in Stoughton. It transitioned to operations mode this week, marking a major milestone for the yearslong research project that’s received support from the U.S. Department of Energy.

“The outlook for decarbonizing our energy sector is just much higher with fusion than anything else,” says Cary Forest, a UW–Madison physics professor who has helped lead the development of WHAM. “First plasma is a crucial first step for us in that direction.”

WHAM started in 2020 as a partnership between UW–Madison, MIT and the company Commonwealth Fusion Systems. Now, WHAM will operate as a public-private partnership between UW–Madison and spinoff company Realta Fusion Inc., positioning it as major force for fusion research advances at the university.

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Elliot Claveau, honorary fellow in the Department of Physics and experimental scientist at Realta Fusion, raises his hands in celebration of achieving a plasma from the control room at the Wisconsin HTS Axisymmetric Mirror Project (WHAM) experiment being conducted at the Wisconsin Plasma Physics Laboratory in Stoughton, Wisconsin on July 16, 2024. Part of a public-private partnership between UW–Madison and Realta Fusion Inc, the WHAM achieved the milestone of creating plasma as part of fusion energy research. (Photo by Bryce Richter / UW–Madison)

The Wisconsin HTS Axisymmetric Mirror Project (WHAM) experiment being conducted at the Wisconsin Plasma Physics Laboratory in Stoughton, Wisconsin is pictured on July 16, 2024. Part of a public-private partnership between UW–Madison and Realta Fusion Inc, the WHAM achieved the milestone of creating plasma as part of fusion energy research. (Photo by Bryce Richter / UW–Madison)

an animated GIF showing fusion at the particle/atomic level, moving from lithium + neutron = tritium + helium waste. Then, tritium + deuterium = neutron + helium waste + lots of energy — The fusion reaction at the atomic level. | Credit: Sarah Perdue, UW–Madison Physics

Mark Saffman part of team awarded in latest round of Research Forward funding

Posted on June 18, 2024

This story was originally published by the OVCR

The Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research (OVCR) hosts the Research Forward initiative to stimulate and support highly innovative and groundbreaking research at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. The initiative is supported by the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF) and will provide funding for 1–2 years, depending on the needs and scope of the project.

Research Forward seeks to support collaborative, multidisciplinary, multi-investigator research projects that are high-risk, high-impact, and transformative. It seeks to fund research projects that have the potential to fundamentally transform a field of study as well as projects that require significant development prior to the submission of applications for external funding. Collaborative research proposals are welcome from within any of the four divisions (Arts & Humanities, Biological Sciences, Physical Sciences, Social Sciences), as are cross-divisional collaborations.

Physics professor Mark Saffman is part of a team awarded funding in Round 4 of the Research Forward competition for their project:

Quanta sensing for next generation quantum computing

Future quantum computers could open new scientific and engineering frontiers, impacting existential challenges like climate change. However, quantum information is delicate; it leaks with time and is prone to significant errors. These errors are exacerbated by imperfect reading and writing of quantum bits (qubits). These challenges fundamentally limit our ability to run quantum programs, and could hold back this powerful technology. Fast and accurate qubit readout, therefore, is essential for unlocking the quantum advantage. Current quantum computers use conventional cameras for reading qubits, which are inherently slow and noisy.

This research project will use quanta (single-photon) sensors for fast and accurate qubit readout. Quanta sensors detect individual photons scattered from qubits, thus enabling sensing qubits at 2-3 orders of magnitude higher speeds (few microseconds from ~10 milliseconds), thereby transforming the capabilities (speed, accuracy) of future quantum computers, and for the first time, paving the way for scalable and practical quantum computing.

Principal investigator: Mohit Gupta, associate professor of computer sciences

Co-PIs: Mark Saffman, professor of physics; Swamit Tannu, assistant professor of computer sciences; Andreas Velten, associate professor of biostatistics and medical informatics, electrical and computer engineering

Ben Woods and team named finalists in 2023 WARF Innovation Awards

Posted on November 27, 2023

Each fall the WARF Innovation Awards recognize some of the best inventions at UW–Madison. WARF receives hundreds of new invention disclosures each year. Of these disclosures, the WARF Innovation Award finalists are considered exceptional in the following criteria:

Has potential for high long-term impact
Presents an exciting solution to a known important problem
Could produce broad benefits for humankind

One of the six finalists comes from Physics. Research Associate Benjamin Woods and a team including Distinguished Scientist Mark Friesen, John Bardeen Prof. of Physics Mark Eriksson, Honorary Associate Robert Joynt, and Graduate Student Emily Joseph developed a quantum device that shows a significant increase in valley splitting, a key property needed for error-free quantum computing. The device features a novel structural composition that turns conventional wisdom on its head.

Two winners, selected from the six finalists, will be announced in WARF’s annual holiday greeting; sign up to receive the greeting here. Each of the two Innovation Award winners receive $10,000, split among UW inventors.

Physics technology shines at Summerfest Tech

Posted on July 14, 2022

Kieran Furlong

Six top technologies in development at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and other UW System campuses headlined WARF Innovation Day at Summerfest Tech June 29. Wednesday’s event at BMO Tower in Milwaukee drew dozens of in-person and virtual investors who heard seven-minute pitch presentations on high-tech innovations ranging from fusion power to bridge safety monitoring.

“This forum was an exceptional opportunity for investors, media and the public to interface with top University of Wisconsin ideas,” said Erik Iverson, CEO of WARF. “It is this exchange of passion and expertise that forwards the state’s innovation ecosystem.”

One of the presenters included Kieran Furlong, an Honorary Fellow with the College of Letters & Science and CEO of Realta Fusion. Furlong is also the Technology-to-Market (T2M) Advisor to the WHAM project, a fusion energy project led by physics professor Cary Forest.

Furlong’s presentation, titled “Breakthrough Physics for Clean Energy Generation,” had this summary:

The Wisconsin High-field Axisymmetric Mirror (WHAM) project is leveraging major advances in superconducting magnets and plasma heating to pursue commercially viable nuclear fusion power. Fusion is how energy is generated in the sun, yet it has been tremendously challenging to harness on Earth. This project seeks to pave the way to a comparatively low-cost fusion device that can be a net energy generator.

ACCESS THE PITCH DECK.

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