Subscribe options

Select your newsletters:

Please enter your email address:

@

Your email address will only be used for the purpose of sending you the ITER Organization publication(s) that you have requested. ITER Organization will not transfer your email address or other personal data to any other party or use it for commercial purposes.

If you change your mind, you can easily unsubscribe by clicking the unsubscribe option at the bottom of an email you've received from ITER Organization.

For more information, see our Privacy policy.

News & Media

Latest ITER Newsline

  • On site | 28 who "truly shined"

    The new ITER Star Awards recognize exemplary performance and commitment. Every year, during the annual assessment campaign, ITER staff may be recognized for exe [...]

    Read more

  • MT-28 Conference | Superconducting magnets as a catalyst

    Many passers-by paused for a moment and picked up their cell phones to capture the scene. It was indeed rare to see dancers on the square outside of the Pavillo [...]

    Read more

  • Fusion world | TCV tokamak turns 30

    The Swiss TCV tokamak (for Tokamak à Configuration Variable, or 'variable configuration' tokamak) has been exploring the physics of nuclear fusion for 30 years [...]

    Read more

  • Image of the week | Port cell with a view

    A visit to ITER would not be complete without a peek into the Tokamak pit where the machine is being progressively assembled. For several years, one of the equa [...]

    Read more

  • Visit | Chinese Minister reaffirms "full support"

    ITER Director-General Pietro Barabaschi and the Chinese Minister of Science and Technology (MOST) Wang Zhigang share a common academic background. They both tra [...]

    Read more

Of Interest

See archived entries

Wendelstein 7-X fusion device one step closer to first plasma

With the successful completion of the testing of all seventy magnetic coils, the functionality of the key technological components for the Wendelstein 7-X fusion experiment is assured. Later this year, the device should produce its first plasma. (Click to view larger version...)
With the successful completion of the testing of all seventy magnetic coils, the functionality of the key technological components for the Wendelstein 7-X fusion experiment is assured. Later this year, the device should produce its first plasma.
With the successful completion of tests on its 70 magnetic coils, the Wendelstein 7—X fusion device is now one step closer to first plasma. Located at the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics in Greifswald, Germany, the device will be the world's largest fusion device of the stellarator type when it turns on before the end of this year.
 
In preparing for operation, each technical system is being tested in turn. Since late April 2015 the focus has been the magnet system, a set of 50 superconducting coils whose job it is to create a stable, thermally insulating magnetic cage for the plasma, surrounded by a second set of 20 planar superconducting coils.

In the most recent tests, the magnet coils were tested under current—first in groups and then as a complete set. "Everything agrees well with the calculations," reported Hans-Stephan Bosch, department head of Wendelstein 7-X Operation on 17th June.

This was the first time that all coils together were supplied with current up to the ultimate required value of 12.8 kiloampere. "The complete set of coils has withstood all technical tests," said Bosch on 6 July 2015. "This assures the required functionality of the primary components of the system. We can now take up the challenge of the next major step, the measuring out of the magnetic surfaces." This will test whether the coils produce the plasma cage in the desired form and shape.
 
Read the full press release here.


return to the latest published articles