The Advanced Projects department pursues exciting emerging research areas in the field of plasma physics and the associated sciences relevant to PPPL’s mission. JT60-SA Advanced Project The recently completed JT-60SA tokamak in Naka, Japan, is part of the international “Broader Approach Agreement” that aims to complement the ITER project and accelerate the realization of fusion energy. The new tokamak, jointly built and operated by Japan and Europe, will address key physics and engineering issues including support for the preparation of ITER operations and optimization of fusion power plants built after ITER. PPPL, a world leader in the design and construction of diagnostic equipment, is developing an x-ray imaging crystal spectrometer for the JT-60SA. The device will record the intensity of x-ray emissions in the JT-60SA plasma and inform operators of plasma temperature and the velocity of its rotation. These conditions will exceed 100 million degrees Celsius in the core and up to 500 kilometers per second in high-confinement plasma scenarios. Meet the Team Luis Delgado-Aparicio Head of Advanced Projects Robert Ellis Chief Engineer Lan Gao Research Physicist Frances Kraus X-Ray Spectroscopist- Staff Research Physicist Claudia Bernhardt Mechanical Design Engineer Masayuki Ono Principal Research Physicist Luke Perkins Sr. Project Manager - Research Portfolio Featured News PPPL makes critical contributions to historic public-private partnership July 5, 2023 View all news 1 / 1 ︎ ︎