About this course
The goal of the course is to provide the physics and technology basis for controlled fusion research, from the main elements of plasma physics to the reactor concepts
- Basics of thermonuclear fusion
- The plasma state and its collective effects
- Charged particle motion and collisional effects
- Fluid description of a plasma
- Plasma equilibrium and stability
- Magnetic confinement: Tokamak and Stellarator
- Waves in plasma
- Wave-particle interactions
- Heating and non inductive current drive by radio frequency waves
- Heating and non inductive current drive by neutral particle beams
- Material science and technology: Low and high Temperature superconductor - Properties of material under irradiation
- Some nuclear aspects of a fusion reactor: Tritium production
- Licensing a fusion reactor: safety, nuclear waste
- Inertial confinement
Learning outcomes
- Design the main elements of a fusion reactor
- Identify the main physics challenges on the way to fusion
- Identify the main technological challenges of fusion
Enrolment details
Contact coordinator via email
Examination
Oral Exam - Exam period is from 13/01/2025 to 01/02/2025 . Exam dates will be announced in mid-November. Oral exam using VOIP. Exam registration before 22/11/2024.
Course requirements
Basic knowledge of electricity and magnetism, and of simple concepts of fluids
Resources
- https://courseware.epfl.ch/courses/course-v1:EPFL+PlasmaIntroduction+1T_2018/about
- https://courseware.epfl.ch/courses/course-v1:EPFL+PlasmaApplication+1T_2018/about
Additional information
- More infoCoursepage on website of École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne
- Contact a coordinator
- CreditsECTS 4
- LevelMaster
- Contact hours per week4
- InstructorsAmbrogio Fasoli
- Mode of instructionOnline - time-independent
If anything remains unclear, please check the FAQ of EPFL (Switzerland).
There are currently no offerings available for students of L'X (France)