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The mission of the Facility is to:
- Perform research into the basic properties of magnetically-confined, high-temperature plasma as part of an international program, whose ultimate aim is ecologically sustainable power generation by the controlled fusion of hydrogen isotopes.
- Ensure that Australia is intellectually and technologically equipped to benefit from a future fusion power industry, with emphasis on the export of high-technology components needed by fusion power stations.
- Maintain Australia’s internationally recognised position of excellence in basic plasma physics and applications such as plasma diagnostics and plasma processing of semiconductors.
The research outcomes of the Facility include:
- A detailed understanding of the behaviour of hot plasma which is magnetically confined in the helical axis stellarator configuration (this forms part of an international program under the International Energy Agency (IEA) Implementation Agreement on Stellarators, to which Australia is a party).
- The development of advanced plasma measurement systems (“diagnostics”), integrating real-time processing and multi-dimensional visualisation of data.
- Fundamental studies of turbulence and transport of particles and energy in confined plasmas.
- Significant contributions to the global fusion research effort and an increased Australian presence in the field of plasma fusion power into the 21st century.
- Improvements in knowledge of basic plasma physics for applications such as plasma processing of semiconductors.
- An important performance indicator was identified as “technological spin-off activities” in areas including instrumentation and techniques.
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