ANS is committed to advancing, fostering, and promoting the development and application of nuclear sciences and technologies to benefit society.
Explore the many uses for nuclear science and its impact on energy, the environment, healthcare, food, and more.
Explore membership for yourself or for your organization.
Conference Spotlight
2026 ANS Annual Conference
May 31–June 3, 2026
Denver, CO|Sheraton Denver
Latest Magazine Issues
Feb 2026
Jul 2025
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
March 2026
Nuclear Technology
February 2026
Fusion Science and Technology
January 2026
Latest News
Fusion energy: Progress, partnerships, and the path to deployment
Over the past decade, fusion energy has moved decisively from scientific aspiration toward a credible pathway to a new energy technology. Thanks to long-term federal support, we have significantly advanced our fundamental understanding of plasma physics—the behavior of the superheated gases at the heart of fusion devices. This knowledge will enable the creation and control of fusion fuel under conditions required for future power plants. Our progress is exemplified by breakthroughs at the National Ignition Facility and the Joint European Torus.
P. Koert, P. MacGibbon, R. Vieira, D. Terry, R. Leccacorvi, J. Doody, W. Beck
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 56 | Number 1 | July 2009 | Pages 109-113
Plasma Engineering and Diagnostics | Eighteenth Topical Meeting on the Technology of Fusion Energy (Part 1) | doi.org/10.13182/FST09-A8885
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
We have developed high power four and eight way splitters for a new Lower Hybrid launcher. The motivation for the new launcher was the need to provide more power and reliability to the launcher structure. In addition there was a desire to simplify and increase the reliability of the implementation of the alumina windows. The launcher consists of 64 waveguide apertures powered by 8 klystrons with maximum power of 250 kW each at 4.6 GHz. Hence, it is necessary to split the power from each Klystron into eight separate waveguides. The outputs of the splitter have a difference in power less than 0.1dB and phase less than 2 degree. The design analysis of the splitter was done with the computer code CST. Structure analysis was performed using Ansys. The splitter is fabricated by machining an open cavity into a thick stainless steel plate creating the specified internal geometry. It is machined to a tight tolerance of +/- 0.005". A fitted lid is then welded on top of the open cavity using electron beam welding. The excess metal is removed with Electro discharge machining (EDM) creating the external geometry. The waveguides are then butt-welded to the splitter. Welding fixtures/parameters are being developed to achieve the desired tolerances. Two methods for attaching the ceramic windows are being evaluated, brazing and electro-forming.