News

DIFFER has started the assembly of an upgraded version of its successful Pilot-PSI (Plasma Surface Interaction) project. By connecting the device with its powerful plasma source and steady state magnets to a beamline of the Ion Beam Facility, Pilot-PSI Upgrade will be able to deliver new insights in the real-time dynamics of how materials react to a plasma.

What can industry and research do to accelerate the energy transition? During the Topsector Energy Conference 2016, DIFFER's Erik Langereis led a brainstorm on multidisciplinary approaches to implement sustainable energy. "Collaboration is key to create innovative solutions and scale them up to mature systems."

With the installation of a superconducting magnet on its unique facility Magnum-PSI, DIFFER can now study the long-term behaviour of materials under the harsh conditions in future fusion reactors. On Saturday 8 October, the 17 ton magnet arrived at DIFFER and was carefully lifted onto its chassis by a 400 ton crane.

From the entrance of the DIFFER building the new Ion Beam Facility is clearly visible. This huge microscope for material properties does not look at light, but uses a stream of fast ions to probe a material's surface and subsurface.