Mini-Courses

All short–courses will be held on Sunday, 2 June 2019 at the Sawgrass Marriott Resort. Conference participants can take advantage of this opportunity to learn about emerging sub-fields of fusion engineering and science. If you are a student or someone who is switching to a new sub-field within fusion and want to learn from the experts, then one of the offered mini courses is for you! The courses run in parallel and are will be certified as continuing education units with certificates being given to participants completing the short-course. Eligible attendees may apply for a Paul Phelps Continuing Education Grant to help offset some of the costs of participating in the short-courses. Please visit http://ieee.npss.org/awards/conference-awards/ for details. ​

Plasma-Material Interactions: Fundamentals and Applications​

Organized by Prof. Davide Curreli, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign​

Neutronics in Fusion:​

Organized By Prof. Laila El-Guebaly and Prof. Mohamed Sawan, University of Wisconsin, Maddison​ ​

The cost for attending one of the courses is:

$450 for regular participants​

$350 for students​ ​

The short course registration deadline is Monday, 3 April 2019. If there are not enough participants for a course then it will not be offered. Anyone that has registered for the cancelled course before the deadline will be refunded the money paid for the course.

Plasma-Material Interactions: Fundamentals and Applications

Course Description

The aim of the mini course is to provide a comprehensive introduction of plasma-material interactions with an emphasis on fusion plasmas. This mini course will address rising interest in the area of plasma material interaction and will in part introduce the breadth and depth of the subject including: plasma surface interactions in fusion edge plasmas, plasma diagnostics for PMI and modeling of the plasma edge and materials, where the plasma/material interface plays a crucial role in materials performance and behavior. A unique aspect of this mini course is to bring instructors who not only have an expertise in plasma-material interactions, but also extensive experience both in PMI experiments and atomistic/multi-scale computational PMI modeling. The course will uniquely describe the challenges of PMI experiments and computational modeling and the areas in which these two thrusts can complement each other. The course instructors include leading researchers in the areas of experimental and computational plasma-material interactions.

A unique aspect of this mini course is to bring instructors who not only have an expertise in plasma-material interactions, but also extensive experience both in PMI experiments and atomistic/multi-scale computational PMI modeling. The course will uniquely describe the challenges of PMI experiments and computational modeling and the areas in which these two thrusts can complement each other. Topics include: PMI fundamentals, the plasma sheath, plasma facing components, PMI diagnostics, computational PMI, PMI of the divertor, PMI of the SOL and pedestal. The course instructors include leading researchers in the areas of experimental and computational plasma-material interactions.​

List of speakers:
  • Davide Curreli (UIUC)
  • Rajesh Maingi (PPPL)
  • Alessandro Bortolon
  • Jiansheng Hu (ASIPP)
  • Xueqiao Xu (LLNL)
Syllabus/program (similar to SOFE2017) topics include (but not necessarily in this order):
  • PMI Fundamentals
  • Plasma Sheath
  • Plasma Facing Materials
  • PMI Diagnostics
  • Computational PMI
  • PMI in the scrape off layer and pedestal
  • PMI in Fusion devices
There will also be plenty of time for further discussion within the day with the various speakers to get more insight into PMI.

Neutronics in Fusion:

Course Description

The aim of this neutronics mini-course is to provide a quick overview of the state-of-the-art nuclear assessment, targeting students and new researchers in the fusion field to bring them up to speed on the basics and pertinent topics over the course of one day. The nuclear assessment is an essential element for the success of any fusion device and has been used as a design tool at early stages of all fusion designs, covering three closely related areas (neutronics, shielding, and activation) and calling for measures to enhance the physics and engineering aspects of each design. Such an integral assessment identifies the nuclear parameters and addresses key issues related to tritium breeding ratio (TBR), neutron wall loadings on first wall and divertor, selection of low-activation materials, radial/vertical build optimization and definition, magnet protection, shielding of vital components, survivability of structural materials in 14-MeV neutron environment, and handling of radioactive materials during operation and after decommissioning.​

This mini-course covers the basics of fusion neutronics, nuclear assessment approaches, latest design philosophy, and applications for ITER experimental facility, conceptual magnetic (tokamak/spherical tokamak/stellarator) and inertial fusion power plants as well as the next-step facilities before DEMO. High fidelity in nuclear results of such fusion devices mandates performing state-of-the-art nuclear analyses that have been achieved through coupling the computer-aided design (CAD) system with the three-dimensional neutronics codes to preserve all geometrically complex features of fusion systems. As such, CAD-based neutronics approaches and potential applications will be outlined in details.​

List of speakers:
  • Prof. Laila El Guebaly (UW-Madison)
  • Prof. Mohamed Sawan (UW-Madison)
  • Prof Paul Wilson (UW-Madison)
Syllabus/program topics include (but not necessarily in this order):
  • Basics of Fusion Neutronics
  • Neutronics Codes
  • Direct Nuclear Responses:neutron wall loading, tritium breeding, nuclear heating, radiation damage, shielding, etc.
  • Activation Codes
  • Activation Responses: radioactive inventory, decay heat, SDR, contact dose, radwaste classifications, etc.
  • Design Requirements and Choices: materials/breeders/coolants, TBR, layout, penetrations, streaming through gaps and ports, etc.
  • Neutronics of Magnetic Fusion Concepts: Tokamaks, Spherical Tokamaks, & Stellarators
  • Neutronics of Inertial Fusion Concepts: Laser, heavy ion, & light ion drivers
  • Managing Fusion Radiactive Waste