New vision for plasma research to open in York
Posted on 27 September 2012
The York Plasma Institute (YPI), the result of a £6m collaboration between the University and the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), will be opened by the Government’s Chief Scientific Adviser, Professor Sir John Beddington, on Monday, 1 October.
Our vision is to establish a world-leading interdisciplinary plasma physics research and training institute
Professor Brian Cantor, Vice-Chancellor
Part of the Department of Physics, the Institute represents a capital investment of £3.7m and provides facilities for research and training in fusion energy; low temperature plasmas for technological and biomedical applications; and laser-plasma interaction.
Plasma is a form of ionised gas, and is abundant in the Universe – stars, including the Sun, are in a plasma state, as is the solar wind, the Northern Lights and lightning. Plasma can be relatively cool, such as in a modern television set or a fluorescent light bulb, or extremely hot, such as in the core of the Sun.
The York Plasma Institute brings together high temperature plasmas for fusion and laser-plasma interaction research with low temperature plasmas under one roof, enabling synergies between the disciplines to be exploited.
Vice-Chancellor of the University of York, Professor Brian Cantor, said: “Our vision is to establish a world-leading interdisciplinary plasma physics research and training institute. We want to inspire partnerships between industry and universities and encourage start-up companies, maximising the value of the research and its impact on society.”
David Delpy, Chief Executive of EPSRC, said: “To drive forward high quality research requires world-leading facilities and EPSRC is pleased to be able to partner with York to build on their already strong track record in this field.”
On Earth, plasmas are usually man-made. These span from relatively cool plasmas used in industry, such as low energy light bulbs, plasma displays or for biomedical applications, to those heated to ten times the temperature at the centre of the Sun, which are used in the quest for fusion energy.
If the scientific and technological challenges can be overcome, fusion offers the potential for an effectively limitless supply of safe, environmentally friendly energy. To address these challenges, University of York researchers collaborate closely with the national fusion programme at Culham Centre for Fusion Energy (CCFE) and the Science and Technology Facilities Council’s (STFC) Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Oxfordshire, as well as other international fusion laboratories.
York Plasma Institute Director, Professor Howard Wilson, said: “With the construction of the international fusion facility ITER, the largest international science project on Earth, fusion is entering an exciting new era.
“It takes fusion beyond a scientific study, requiring closer collaboration between scientists, engineers and industry to address the remaining scientific and technological questions and deliver energy to the grid. The philosophy of the York Plasma Institute embraces this collaborative approach: it is a really exciting time for us.”
The new facilities of the York Plasma Institute house 11 academic staff, 10 post-doctoral researchers and over 40 postgraduate students.
The main YPI building includes the Remote Tokamak Control Room which enables remote participation and leadership of some experiments on the MAST tokamak at Culham Centre for Fusion Energy, as well as experiments on other tokamaks world-wide, such as the new superconducting tokamak KSTAR in South Korea. In addition, there are postgraduate teaching facilities and video-conference meeting rooms.
Separate purpose-built laboratories at the York Plasma Institute provide a valuable environment for experimental facilities for industrial and academic collaboration. These include a laser laboratory used, for example, to simulate astrophysical plasma phenomena, and a biomedical laboratory for investigating potential biomedical applications of low temperature plasmas, including sterilisation, wound healing and cancer treatment. A plasma processing laboratory with equipment donated by Intel allows researchers to study and optimise the plasma processes used in computer chip manufacture.
The opening event features a series of workshops, keynote speakers, tours of the facilities, display posters, networking opportunities and outreach sessions for local schoolchildren. The day of activities will culminate with the official opening and keynote speech by Professor Sir John Beddington.
Notes to editors:
- A gallery of images is available for the media to download. Visit www.york.ac.uk/news-and-events/news/2012/events/plasma-institute/gallery. Further photos will be taken during the opening events and are available on request from the University of York Press Office.
- More information on the York Plasma Institute at the University of York at www.york.ac.uk/physics/ypi/
- The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) is the UK’s main agency for funding research in engineering and the physical sciences. EPSRC invests around £800m a year in research and postgraduate training, to help the nation handle the next generation of technological change. The areas covered range from information technology to structural engineering, and mathematics to materials science. This research forms the basis for future economic development in the UK and improvements for everyone’s health, lifestyle and culture. EPSRC works alongside other Research Councils with responsibility for other areas of research. The Research Councils work collectively on issues of common concern via Research Councils UK.
- Culham Centre for Fusion Energy in Oxfordshire is home to the UK’s fusion research programme, most notably the MAST (Mega Amp Spherical Tokamak) experiment. It also hosts the world’s largest fusion facility, JET (Joint European Torus), which is operated for CCFE’s European partners under the European Fusion Development Agreement. Further information is available at www.ccfe.ac.uk and www.jet.efda.org. Fusion research at Culham is funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC – www.epsrc.ac.uk) and by the European Union under the EURATOM treaty.
- The Science and Technology Facilities Council is keeping the UK at the forefront of international science and tackling some of the most significant challenges facing society such as meeting our future energy needs, monitoring and understanding climate change, and global security. The Council has a broad science portfolio and works with the academic and industrial communities to share its expertise in materials science, space and ground-based astronomy technologies, laser science, microelectronics, wafer scale manufacturing, particle and nuclear physics, alternative energy production, radio communications and radar. STFC operates or hosts world class experimental facilities including:
- in the UK; ISIS pulsed neutron source, the Central Laser Facility, and LOFAR. STFC is also the majority shareholder in Diamond Light Source Ltd.
- overseas; telescopes on La Palma and Hawaii. It enables UK researchers to access leading international science facilities by funding membership of international bodies including European Laboratory for Particle Physics (CERN), the Institut Laue Langevin (ILL), European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) and the European Southern Observatory (ESO). STFC is one of seven publicly-funded research councils. It is an independent, non-departmental public body of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS). www.stfc.ac.uk
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