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A simple fusion recipe
Permanent magnets could help to optimize the geometry of a future fusion reactor
Researchers have proposed a simplified design for nuclear-fusion reactors, based on powerful permanent magnets.
- nature
Fusion reactors are still at the prototype stage.
They confine plasma inside a doughnut-shaped magnetic field and heat it to millions of degrees, with the goal of fusing light atomic nuclei into heavier ones and releasing vast amounts of energy.
One promising design, called a stellarator, normally requires sophisticated superconducting coils to make the…