Ancient Japanese Art

Inspired by Kintsugi, scientists at PPPL have developed a method to manage plasma in fusion reactors by utilizing magnetic field imperfections, enhancing stability and paving the way for more reliable and efficient fusion power. Credit: SciTechDaily.com




Scientists take advantage of imperfections in magnetic fields to enhance fusion plasma.

In the Japanese art of Kintsugi, an artist takes the broken shards of a bowl and fuses them back together with gold to make a final product more beautiful than the original.

That idea is inspiring a new approach to managing plasma, the super-hot state of matter, for use as a power source. Scientists are using the imperfections in magnetic fields that confine a reaction to improve and enhance the plasma in an approach outlined in a new paper in the journal Nature Communications.  READ MORE...