Virtual Pressroom

Virtual Pressroom 2009

51st Annual Meeting of the APS Division of Plasma Physics

Major achievements in plasma research this year include:

• Start of operations at the National Ignition Facility

• Laser-based fusion experiment at Livermore National Laboratory in Livermore, California

• Significant performance improvements in magnetically confined fusion experiments around the world

• New approaches in computer simulation and theory that dramatically reduce the time needed for particular calculations related to the acceleration of electrons in plasma arising from the interaction of the plasma with an intense laser or intense electron beam

• Generation of energetic heavy particles from the interaction of an intense laser with specially shaped targets

Highlights & Press Releases

American Physical Society Invites Atlanta to Discover Plasma

Dealing with Dust in ITER 

Electron Self-Injection into an Evolving Plasma Bubble

High-Performance Plasmas May Make Reliable, Efficient Fusion Power a Reality

Laser-Plasma Accelerators Ride-on Einstein's Shoulders

Lithium Calms the Edge Plasma in the National Spherical Torus Experiment

Magnetic Bumps + Super-Bananas = Mountain of Torque

Magnetic Mirrors are Simple Again

New Paradigm for Plasma Wave Simulations: Integration from Antenna to Core Plasma

Researchers Use Trident Laser to Accelerate Protons to Record Energies

Ropes of Plasma: Onset and Stagnation of 3D Magnetic Reconnection

Upping the Power Triggers an Ordered Helical Plasma

Ways to Reduce Your Tokamak Heating Bill

World’s Highest-Energy, Short-Pulse Laser Sheds Light on Fast Ignition and High Energy Density Physics