The High Field Stellarator Path to a Fusion Pilot Plant

Abstract
The stellarator magnetic confinement concept has many advantages as a fusion power core, due to its inherently steady-state, disruption-free operation. These advantages, and the potential to tailor the performance of the plasma, have been demonstrated over the past several decades, including confirmation of the scientific basis of stellarators nearly at the scale needed for a fusion pilot plant (FPP). Recent advances in the theory and computation needed to optimize plasma performance, and the possibility to operate at much higher magnetic fields using high temperature superconducting fusion magnets, have opened the opportunity for the rapid realization of commercial fusion energy. Type One Energy is following this path, developing a high field, optimized stellarator that will enable a direct path to the operation of an FPP. This presentation will describe the stellarator concept, along with Type One’s plans including near-term design validation activities.

Bio
A Type One Energy co-founder, John Canik serves as the company’s Chief Science & Engineering Officer. With over twenty years of high-impact fusion energy research and technical leadership of extensive science and engineering teams, Canik's expertise is substantial.

Before his tenure at Type One, he dedicated sixteen years to the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, initially joining as a Eugene P. Wigner Fellow. His roles at ORNL included Group Leader for both the Theory and Modeling Group and the Experimental Plasma Physics Group, as well as Interim Director of the Fusion Energy Division. In these capacities, he managed progressively significant portions of ORNL's fusion program and served as a point of contact with the Department of Energy's Office of Fusion Energy Sciences.

He has coauthored more than 140 fusion technical papers, including a seminal paper on stellarators.

Canik holds an MS and a PhD in electrical and computer engineering from the University of Wisconsin, along with a BA in physics and computer science from New York University.