FPN09-39

Stellarator Advances

September 1, 2009

The last of the superconducting coils for the billion-dollar class Wendelstein 7-X has successfully passed cryogenic tests at CEA Saclay near Paris, France. The 50 non-planar and 20 planar coils are the heart of the device and technically the most demanding components.

Complicated magnet coils have been an issue for stellarator design and construction. Scientists at MIT and Princeton are investigating a novel method to simplify magnetic field coils by using monolithic high-temperature superconductors for field shaping. The idea is to use a relatively simple set of coils to generate a background field and to use the monoliths to shield/shape the magnetic field to the desired configuration. The idea was purportedly first suggested by Mike Zarnstorff of Princeton and is described more fully in the latest issue of Stellarator News posted at:

http://www.ornl.gov/sci/fed/stelnews/pdf/sn121.pdf