Compendium of ITER design principles taking shape

Under the editorial lead of EUROfusion, the ITER Engineering Basis Handbook delivers a stand-alone compilation of ITER design principles, the underlying technical design basis and its evolution from conception to construction, together with the technical, scientific, and regulatory rationale behind the major decisions. It facilitates the access and understanding of the project’s technological journey by consolidating the information from a multitude of sources. It aims at securing the lessons learned, the return of experience, and the knowledge transfer from the world's largest fusion project, drawing from the direct experience of knowledgeable experts who have worked on ITER, for the benefit of fusion professionals inside and outside of the ITER project and the next generation.

See the first chapters of Volume 1, "Genesis, Design and Evolution" on the ITER Technical Reports pages of the public website.
 

The third ITER Public-Private Fusion Workshop will be organized on 28 and 29 April 2026 at the ITER site in Saint Paul-lez-Durance, France.

For the past two years, ITER has opened its doors to private sector fusion companies for joint workshops on areas of mutual interest and mechanisms for positive engagement. This year’s theme—“Fusion: a Joint Quest”—reflects the reality that progress toward fusion energy is neither linear nor uniform, but pursued through multiple technical approaches, institutional models, and timelines. Across public and private efforts alike, divergent visions coexist with genuinely complementary strengths—in science, engineering, manufacturing, and systems integration.

The two-day workshop will take place on Tuesday and Wednesday (28 and 29 April), with Monday 27 April and Thursday 30 April set aside for consultations with ITER experts, tailored tours of the ITER worksite, and interactions among participants. Registration will open soon on the Events page of the ITER website.

Recruitment opened on Monday 12 January 2026 for eight Postdoctoral Fellowships at the ITER Organization.

If you are an outstanding PhD graduate in science, technology, and engineering whose expertise aligns with the needs of the ITER project, you may be eligible for a two-year postdoctoral position at the ITER Organization, where you will work closely with ITER specialists and contribute to the project through original research.

The eight Postdoctoral Fellowships are proposed through two different funding schemes: 

Monaco/ITER Postdoctoral Fellowships (5 positions)
The Principality of Monaco is providing the financing for five Postdoctoral Fellowships through a Partnership Arrangement signed with the ITER Organization in 2008 and renewed in 2018. You can apply to a Monaco/ITER Postdoctoral Fellowship if: 1) you are a national of China, the European Union plus Switzerland, India, Japan, Korea, Russia, the United States, or the Principality of Monaco; and 2) your PhD was awarded after 1 January 2023 (or you will have received your PhD before 31 December 2026).

Korea-ITER Postdoctoral Research Fellowships (3 positions)
Through an agreement signed between the ITER Organization and the Korean Domestic Agency, ITER Korea directly funds scientific or technical fellowships in fields of mutual interest and with a view to contributing to training the talent that will be needed for the fusion industry of the future. To apply for a Korea-ITER Postdoctoral Research Fellowship you must be a Korean postdoctoral researcher.

The application process for both Fellowship categories is the same: after verifying that you have relevant experience in one or more of the 2026 research topics, apply by 1 March 2026 through the ITER Jobs portal.

See this ITER webpage for more information. 

The fifth campaign of spherical tokamak fusion experiments is underway at the MAST Upgrade facility at the Culham Centre for Fusion Energy in England. This latest campaign will focus on advancing understanding of high-pressure fusion plasma, optimising plasma control and energy confinement, refining advanced divertor designs for heat exhaust management, and validating predictive tools used to model plasma behaviour in future fusion power plants.

The Mega Amp Spherical Tokamak (MAST) Upgrade, which became operational in 2020, is the world’s largest active spherical tokamak. Its test campaigns will inform the construction of the STEP demo-class fusion plant prototype that is scheduled to begin operations in 2040.

The latest research phase will last six months and involve 950 plasma pulses. More than 200 international researchers will be involved in the experiments and the results will contribute to the growing global body of experimental fusion data.