National Institute for Fusion Science
🇯🇵 Toki, JP · Active
Also known as NIFS
The National Institute for Fusion Science (NIFS) is a Japanese inter-university research institute in Toki, Gifu Prefecture, established in May 1989; since 2004 it has been part of the National Institutes of Natural Sciences. It built and ran the Large Helical Device (LHD), a superconducting heliotron, a type of stellarator in which twisted coils rather than a plasma current confine the plasma. LHD began experiments in 1998 and held plasmas for up to 54 minutes, which Wikipedia describes as the longest sustained runs of any magnetic fusion experiment. Its experimental programme ended on 25 December 2025 after more than 27 years. NIFS opens its facilities, including supercomputers, to university researchers, and the company Helical Fusion was founded by NIFS scientists.
- Sector
- Fusion
- Technology
- Stellarator
- Role
- Research institute, Operator
It is the operator of record for Large Helical Device (shut down).
Terms
- Stellarator
- Confinement produced by external coils twisted into complex three-dimensional shapes, so no net current has to be driven through the plasma. That removes the disruptions a tokamak's plasma current can cause and allows continuous operation, at the price of coils that are far harder to design and build.
Design values
| Device | Parameter | Value | Unit | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Large Helical Device | Major radius | 3.9 | m | design valueclaimed |
| Large Helical Device | Minor radius | 0.65 | m | design valueclaimed |
| Large Helical Device | On-axis magnetic field | 4 | T | design valueclaimed |
Devices
Related companies
Sources
- HOME / National Institute for Fusion Scienceoperator
- NIFS Historyoperator
- Large Helical Deviceaggregator