New partnership in stellarator fusion energy devices set to advance the commercialization of fusion power production.
Stellarex, Inc. announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Max-Planck-Institute for Plasma Physics (IPP) that provides a framework for scientific and academic cooperation in developing stellarator-based fusion energy production.
"Since our founding in 2022, Stellarex has been laying the technical foundations for commercialization of fusion energy and delivery for our stellarator design," said Professor Amitava Bhattacharjee, President and Chief Science Officer of Stellarex. "We are delighted to be collaborating with the Max-Planck-Institute, where our combined expertise in stellarator fusion energy operations and the theory and computational design of stellarators will provide foundational support for development initiatives. The Stellarex mission is to accelerate the time to market for commercial fusion energy."
Stellarex and IPP will partner in specific areas of fusion energy science and technology, including the optimization of plasma confinement and power/particle control, by leveraging our shared expertise.
"The W7-X stellarator at IPP is a world-leading experimental facility, with a very capable team, and optimized properties and extensive diagnostics, that can help validate stellarator power plant performance in key areas required for a commercial device," added Dr. Mike Zarnstorff, Chief Technology Officer of Stellarex. "We look forward to working with our fusion colleagues at IPP to advance stellarator physics and engineering further."
"IPP has been involved in the development of stellarators since the 1960s. The institute has fundamentally advanced both the physical understanding and the technology. With Wendelstein 7-X in Greifswald, IPP now operates the largest and most powerful stellarator experiment in the world," said Prof. Dr. Per Helander, Head of IPP's Stellarator Theory Division. "We are pleased to be driving this development forward together with the experts from Stellarex."
Professor Bhattacharjee added, "Our collaboration with IPP will play an important role in the rapid realization of economic fusion energy."
Stellarex has established a growing international stellarator ecosystem and supply chain of partners, including leading global research institutions, host communities, nuclear component and subsystem suppliers, nuclear operators, nuclear engineering services, large-scale computing infrastructure providers, and other service providers in industry.
Subsequent to the completion of the MUSE prototype at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory led by Principal Investigator Dr. Zarnstorff, Stellarex development initiatives are focused on the design and construction of the Stellarex intermediate stellarator (SX0) to confirm the pivotal net energy gain milestone (Q > 1) using tritium and deuterium.
