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Rock Fusion AI Platform Streamlines the Entire Stellarator Design Workflow

Recently, the AI agent collaboration platform for stellarator design independently developed by Rock Fusion has achieved full coverage of the entire design workflow, encompassing key stages such as zero-dimensional parameter design, plasma configuration optimization and performance analysis, as well as coil engineering feasibility assessment. The company stated that the platform can search over a thousand initial configurations and hundreds of thousands of coil schemes, reducing the typical design iteration cycle from several weeks to several days. Rock Fusion stellarator concept image. Leveraging this platform, Rock Fusion has completed the full-machine physics design of a medium-sized superconducting stellarator with a major radius of 2 meters and a central magnetic field of 3 tesla. Design work for the company's other devices under development is also being advanced on the same platform. Stellarators rely on external three-dimensional coils to directly generate helical magnetic fields, eliminating the need to sustain magnetic confinement through plasma current. This mechanism inherently reduces the risk of major disruptions faced by tokamaks and offers the potential for long-pulse steady-state operation. In 2025, Germany's Wendelstein 7-X (W7-X) stellarator achieved significant progress in the "triple product" metric during long-duration discharges, drawing greater attention to the stellarator route.

2026-09-02

Japan's Helical Fusion Technology Selected as Candidate for METI's Fusion Demonstration Program

Helical Fusion Co., Ltd. has recently been selected as a final candidate for the fusion power demonstration project support program by Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI). The program aims to align with Japan's national fusion strategy, advancing fusion energy into the demonstration phase by the 2030s and building the technical foundation for subsequent commercialization. The left image shows Helix HARUKA, Helical Fusion's integrated demonstration device; the right image shows Helix KANATA, Helical Fusion's fusion test plant. Under the current arrangement, the program will provide approximately 60 billion yen in government funding over three years through 2028, supporting private-sector R&D across multiple fusion technology...

2026-09-01

Tennessee Issues First-Ever Commercial Fusion-Specific Permit in the U.S. to Type One Energy

The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) has issued Type One Energy the state's first permit specifically for a fusion energy facility, allowing the company to advance fusion-related projects at the Tennessee Valley Authority's (TVA) Bull Run Energy Complex in Clinton. Tennessee officials stated this is the first permit of its kind in the United States issued under a new state-level fusion regulatory framework. Tennessee Governor Bill Lee, alongside fusion energy partners, presented the first U.S. permit specifically for a commercial fusion facility on Monday at the Organization of American States (OAS) annual meeting in Nashville. (LR) TVA Interim...

2026-09-01

Rock Fusion Completes Key Processes for Stellarator 3D Non-Planar Superconducting Prototype Coil

Recently, the stellarator high-strength stainless steel armored 3D non-planar superconducting prototype coil developed by Rock Fusion (Shanghai) Technology Co., Ltd. has completed two key processes: 3D precision winding and ground insulation wrapping. The overall 3D geometric error of the coil is consistently controlled at the millimeter level, indicating that the company has preliminarily established key manufacturing processes including material adaptation, 3D precision forming, and insulation wrapping for high-field steady-state stellarator superconducting magnets. The stellarator is an important device for steady-state controlled nuclear fusion research, and 3D superconducting coils are used to generate the complex magnetic fields required to confine plasma. Unlike conventional planar coils, stellarator coils typically feature non-planar spatial structures with continuously varying curvature...

2026-08-25

Thea Energy Completes Series B Extension to Advance Stellarator Fusion Plant Deployment

Thea Energy, Inc. announced on August 18 that it has completed an extension of its Series B financing round, with new investors including Brevan Howard Macro Venture, Aloniq, ALJ Investments, Beyond Earth Ventures, and other global strategic investors. The company stated that the new funds will be used to advance the engineering and commercial deployment of its stellarator fusion technology. Thea Energy had previously announced the completion of a $100 million Series B round, led by the U.S. Innovative Technology Fund (USIT) under Thomas Tull. The funds are primarily intended to expand magnet manufacturing capacity and build a second facility in northern New Jersey.

2026-08-19

Cathode High-Voltage Power Supply for CFQS Device ECRH System Manufactured by CNNC Tongchuang Successfully Shipped

On August 3, the cathode high-voltage power supply for the Electron Cyclotron Resonance Heating (ECRH) system of China's first Quasi-Axisymmetric Stellarator (CFQS) device, manufactured by CNNC Tongchuang (Chengdu) Technology Co., Ltd., successfully passed factory acceptance and was officially shipped. The CFQS device is a major scientific and technological infrastructure project of Sichuan Province. The device adopts an advanced quasi-axisymmetric magnetic field configuration, combining the advantages of high confinement performance and steady-state operation. Under low-parameter operating conditions, the CFQS test platform confirmed that the quasi-axisymmetric magnetic field configuration can effectively reduce neoclassical transport losses in plasma and improve plasma confinement, marking the first international experimental verification of the superiority of the quasi-axisymmetric magnetic field configuration. Next, the CFQS stellarator...

2026-08-10

Department of Plasma Physics and Fusion Engineering at the University of Science and Technology of China Proposes New Three-Dimensional Magnetic Field Configuration for Stellarators

Stellarators confine high-temperature plasma using three-dimensional magnetic fields generated by external coils, enabling steady-state operation without relying on plasma current and avoiding instabilities such as disruptions, making them the fastest-growing technological route globally. However, if the three-dimensional magnetic field is not carefully optimized, trapped particles can experience significant radial drift, leading to a substantial increase in neoclassical transport losses. To suppress this drift, the magnetic field must satisfy the "omnigenity" condition, meaning that the time-averaged radial drift of all trapped particle orbits is zero. The most widely applied class of omnigenous magnetic fields is poloidal omnigenity (PO), and such configurations are also commonly referred to as quasi-isodynamic (QI) configurations...

2026-08-06

Oak Ridge National Laboratory Licenses Cryogenic Fuel Pellet Technology to Type One Energy

The U.S. Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) has licensed a suite of cryogenic fuel pellet injection technologies to Type One Energy to advance fuel supply capabilities needed for high-performance fusion plasma operations. The two parties signed the licensing agreement on August 5 in Knoxville, Tennessee, USA. The license covers four ORNL inventions, primarily related to the design and operation of cryogenic fuel pellet injection systems. The technology forms solid hydrogen isotope fuel pellets at cryogenic temperatures near absolute zero and injects them into fusion plasma at high speeds. Compared with methods such as gas injection, pellet injection is more effective at delivering fuel deeper into the plasma...

2026-08-06

BlueStar Fusion Completes "Angel+" Round Financing, High-Temperature Superconducting Stellarator Project Moves to Engineering Implementation Phase

Recently, Hefei BlueStar Fusion Technology Co., Ltd. (BlueStar Fusion, hereinafter referred to as "BlueStar Fusion") completed an Angel+ round of financing on the scale of several hundred million RMB, with a post-investment valuation exceeding 3 billion RMB. Following the completion of this financing round, the company will continue to advance the verification of key components, engineering manufacturing, and full-system integration of the high-temperature superconducting stellarator, with the goal of initiating the construction of the Phase I high-temperature superconducting stellarator system by 2027. BlueStar Fusion was established in August 2025 and is primarily engaged in the R&D and engineering of high-temperature superconducting stellarator technology. The company has assembled a professional team of nearly 100 members, covering fusion physics, superconducting magnets, structures and precision manufacturing, cryogenic engineering, artificial intelligence, and other disciplines. Ex...

2026-08-04

IAEA Launches New Project to Advance Research Network on Small and Medium-Sized Fusion Devices

The International Atomic Energy Agency recently launched a new Coordinated Research Project, aiming to further strengthen the global network of small and medium-sized fusion devices, supporting multinational coordinated experiments, diagnostic technology development, and personnel training, providing a platform for cultivating the next generation of fusion researchers. The Tokamak TT-1 device at the Thailand Institute of Nuclear Technology (TINT) has long participated in the IAEA Coordinated Research Project on the network of small and medium-sized fusion devices, contributing to international cooperation, research, and capacity building. (Photo: JP Cayol/IAEA) This project builds upon a previous five-year collaborative research program. The previous project was named Small and Medium-Sized Magnetic Confinement...

2026-07-30