# Magnetic Confinement Fusion

Domain: Fusion, Energy & Climate · 249 papers indexed · newest 2026-10-29

Tokamaks and stellarators, ITER, compact high-field devices, plasma confinement records and machine-learning plasma control.

Key concepts: tokamak, stellarator, magnetic confinement, plasma confinement, high-field, ITER, disruption

## Research dossier (premium)

**Magnetic Confinement Fusion: State of the Field (October 2026)** (v1, updated 2026-10-30; 4,416 words, 65 sources, 28 evidence-mapped claims)

Tokamaks and stellarators are the main routes to fusion power based on magnetic confinement. This dossier reviews confinement regimes, edge and disruption control, stellarator optimization, plasma-facing materials, machine-learning control and results from long-pulse, high-density and deuterium-tritium experiments through 2025, with 2026 preprints flagged. The central takeaway is that key capabilities have been shown in separate devices, while integrated burning-plasma performance remains a future goal.

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## Most influential

- **[Magnetic control of tokamak plasmas through deep reinforcement learning](https://space-kitty.com/papers/doi:10.1038/s41586-021-04301-9)**. Jonas Degrave, Federico Felici, Jonas Buchli et al. · 2022 · Nature (doi:10.1038/s41586-021-04301-9 · 751 citations). Source: <https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-021-04301-9>
  > Abstract Nuclear fusion using magnetic confinement, in particular in the tokamak configuration, is a promising path towards sustainable energy. A core challenge is to shape and maintain a high-temperature plasma within the tokamak vessel. This requires high-dimensional, high-frequency, closed-loop control using magnetic actuator coils, further complicated by the diverse requirements across a wide range of plasma configurations. In this work, we introduce a previously undescribed architecture for tokamak magnetic controller design that autonomously learns to command the full set of control coil…
  > _Abstract excerpt by Jonas Degrave et al., CC-BY, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-021-04301-9; truncated._
- **[First Observation of Edge Localized Modes Mitigation with Resonant and Nonresonant Magnetic Perturbations in ASDEX Upgrade](https://space-kitty.com/papers/doi:10.1103/physrevlett.106.225004)**. W. Suttrop, Thomas H. Eich, C. Fuchs et al. · 2011 · Physical Review Letters (doi:10.1103/physrevlett.106.225004 · 501 citations). Source: <https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevlett.106.225004>
- **[Predicting disruptive instabilities in controlled fusion plasmas through deep learning](https://space-kitty.com/papers/doi:10.1038/s41586-019-1116-4)**. Julian Kates‐Harbeck, Alexey Svyatkovskiy, William M. Tang · 2019 · Nature (doi:10.1038/s41586-019-1116-4 · 367 citations). Source: <https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-019-1116-4>
- **[Theory of plasma confinement in non-axisymmetric magnetic fields](https://space-kitty.com/papers/doi:10.1088/0034-4885/77/8/087001)**. P. Helander · 2014 · Reports on Progress in Physics (doi:10.1088/0034-4885/77/8/087001 · 355 citations). Source: <https://doi.org/10.1088/0034-4885/77/8/087001>
- **[Challenges for plasma-facing components in nuclear fusion](https://space-kitty.com/papers/doi:10.1063/1.5090100)**. Jochen Max Linke, Juan Du, Th. Loewenhoff et al. · 2019 · Matter and Radiation at Extremes (doi:10.1063/1.5090100 · 331 citations). Source: <https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5090100>
  > The interaction processes between the burning plasma and the first wall in a fusion reactor are diverse: the first wall will be exposed to extreme thermal loads of up to several tens of megawatts per square meter during quasistationary operation, combined with repeated intense thermal shocks (with energy densities of up to several megajoules per square meter and pulse durations on a millisecond time scale). In addition to these thermal loads, the wall will be subjected to bombardment by plasma ions and neutral particles (D, T, and He) and by energetic neutrons with energies up to 14 MeV. Hopef…
  > _Abstract excerpt by Jochen Max Linke et al., CC-BY, https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5090100; truncated._
- **[Heuristic drift-based model of the power scrape-off width in low-gas-puff H-mode tokamaks](https://space-kitty.com/papers/doi:10.1088/0029-5515/52/1/013009)**. R.J. Goldston · 2011 · Nuclear Fusion (doi:10.1088/0029-5515/52/1/013009 · 345 citations). Source: <https://doi.org/10.1088/0029-5515/52/1/013009>
- **[I-mode: an H-mode energy confinement regime with L-mode particle transport in Alcator C-Mod](https://space-kitty.com/papers/doi:10.1088/0029-5515/50/10/105005)**. Dennis G. Whyte, A. Hubbard, J. W. Hughes et al. · 2010 · Nuclear Fusion (doi:10.1088/0029-5515/50/10/105005 · 340 citations). Source: <https://doi.org/10.1088/0029-5515/50/10/105005>
- **[Mean and Oscillating Plasma Flows and Turbulence Interactions across the L−H Confinement Transition](https://space-kitty.com/papers/doi:10.1103/physrevlett.106.065001)**. G. D. Conway, C. Angioni, Francois Ryter et al. · 2011 · Physical Review Letters (doi:10.1103/physrevlett.106.065001 · 307 citations). Source: <https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevlett.106.065001>
- **[A long-pulse high-confinement plasma regime in the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak](https://space-kitty.com/papers/doi:10.1038/nphys2795)**. J. Li, Huan Guo, Baonian Wan et al. · 2013 · Nature Physics (doi:10.1038/nphys2795 · 292 citations). Source: <https://doi.org/10.1038/nphys2795>
- **[Magnetic-confinement fusion](https://space-kitty.com/papers/doi:10.1038/nphys3745)**. J. Ongena, Raymond Koch, Robert C. WOLF et al. · 2016 · Nature Physics (doi:10.1038/nphys3745 · 282 citations). Source: <https://doi.org/10.1038/nphys3745>
- **[Fuel retention studies with the ITER-Like Wall in JET](https://space-kitty.com/papers/doi:10.1088/0029-5515/53/8/083023)**. S. Brezinsek, T. Loarer, Volker Philipps et al. · 2013 · Nuclear Fusion (doi:10.1088/0029-5515/53/8/083023 · 235 citations). Source: <https://doi.org/10.1088/0029-5515/53/8/083023>
- **[Achievement of Reactor-Relevant Performance in Negative Triangularity Shape in the DIII-D Tokamak](https://space-kitty.com/papers/doi:10.1103/physrevlett.122.115001)**. Max E. Austin, A. Marinoni, M. L. Walker et al. · 2019 · Physical Review Letters (doi:10.1103/physrevlett.122.115001 · 190 citations). Source: <https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevlett.122.115001>
- **[Demonstration of reduced neoclassical energy transport in Wendelstein 7-X](https://space-kitty.com/papers/doi:10.1038/s41586-021-03687-w)**. C. D. Beidler, Håkan M. Smith, Arturo Alonso et al. · 2021 · Nature (doi:10.1038/s41586-021-03687-w · 170 citations). Source: <https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-021-03687-w>
  > Abstract Research on magnetic confinement of high-temperature plasmas has the ultimate goal of harnessing nuclear fusion for the production of electricity. Although the tokamak1 is the leading toroidal magnetic-confinement concept, it is not without shortcomings and the fusion community has therefore also pursued alternative concepts such as the stellarator. Unlike axisymmetric tokamaks, stellarators possess a three-dimensional (3D) magnetic field geometry. The availability of this additional dimension opens up an extensive configuration space for computational optimization of both the field g…
  > _Abstract excerpt by C. D. Beidler et al., CC-BY, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-021-03687-w; truncated._
- **[Thermonuclear ignition in inertial confinement fusion and comparison with magnetic confinement](https://space-kitty.com/papers/doi:10.1063/1.3380857)**. R. Betti, P.-Y. Chang, B. K. Spears et al. · 2010 · Physics of Plasmas (doi:10.1063/1.3380857 · 187 citations). Source: <https://doi.org/10.1063/1.3380857>
- **[Magnetic configuration effects on the Wendelstein 7-X stellarator](https://space-kitty.com/papers/doi:10.1038/s41567-018-0141-9)**. and the W7-X Team, A. Dinklage, C. D. Beidler et al. · 2018 · Nature Physics (doi:10.1038/s41567-018-0141-9 · 166 citations). Source: <https://doi.org/10.1038/s41567-018-0141-9>

## Newest

- **[Magnetic shocks generated by two counterstreaming plasma jets induced by an intense femtosecond laser pulse](https://space-kitty.com/papers/arxiv:2610.39808)**. R. S. Zemskov, A. V. Kotov, S. E. Perevalov et al. · 2026 (arXiv:2610.39808). Source: <https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.39808>
- **[Options for heating, fueling, and current drive in MANTA, a high-field negative triangularity fusion pilot plant](https://space-kitty.com/papers/arxiv:2610.38899)**. Haley S. Wilson, Andrew O. Nelson, Jin Myung Park et al. · 2026 (arXiv:2610.38899). Source: <https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.38899>
- **[Self-organized hybrid scenario mediated by fishbone modes in the EAST tokamak](https://space-kitty.com/papers/arxiv:2610.36875)**. J. S. Geng, Y. Q. Chu, B. F. Gao et al. · 2026 (arXiv:2610.36875). Source: <https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.36875>
- **[Generative modeling for fusion: a large-scale benchmark of stellarator fast-ion simulations](https://space-kitty.com/papers/arxiv:2610.37910)**. Misha Padidar, Teresa Huang, Mark Goldstein et al. · 2026 (arXiv:2610.37910). Source: <https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.37910>
- **[Toward Integrated Microwave Diagnostics for Future Fusion Devices: Design of a Compact Waveguide Diplexer](https://space-kitty.com/papers/arxiv:2610.34881)**. Xiaoliang Li, Valerian Hall-Chen, Umesh Kumar et al. · 2026 (arXiv:2610.34881). Source: <https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.34881>
- **[Drift wave turbulence and transport analysis of hot ion L-mode plasma with fishbone instability on the HL-3 tokamak](https://space-kitty.com/papers/arxiv:2610.35072)**. Y. K. Shu, W. Chen, Z. J. Li et al. · 2026 (arXiv:2610.35072). Source: <https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.35072>
- **[Maximization of nuclear fusion reactivity via optimal energy distributions](https://space-kitty.com/papers/arxiv:2610.35507)**. Roberto Onofrio, Kamel Ourabah, Carlo Presilla · 2026 · Physical Review E 114, 044136 (2026) (arXiv:2610.35507 · doi:10.1103/xhzy-hxdw). Source: <https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.35507>
- **[Interaction of Strong X-mode Waves with Magnetized Pair Plasmas](https://space-kitty.com/papers/arxiv:2610.35849)**. Navin Sridhar · 2026 (arXiv:2610.35849). Source: <https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.35849>
- **[Elasticized magnetohydrostatics](https://space-kitty.com/papers/arxiv:2610.36241)**. J. W. Burby, I. Cho, M. Ruth · 2026 (arXiv:2610.36241). Source: <https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.36241>
- **[An In-depth Study of Stochastic Stellarator Coil Optimization](https://space-kitty.com/papers/arxiv:2610.33374)**. Vincenzo Gallegos, Evan Laljit, Julianne Stratton et al. · 2026 (arXiv:2610.33374). Source: <https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.33374>
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