The worldwide energy transition from fossil fuels to sustainable energy requires technology that allows large quantities of clean, sustainable and reliable energy to be generated in compact power stations. Fusion energy could satisfy this demand without the emission of greenhouse gases. Nuclear fusion is the energy source of our sun. At the core of the sun, energy is released when hydrogen atoms react at high temperatures to produce helium. We can and want to make this fusion process safe and clean to use on earth as well.
ITER project
The first fusion reactor that can demonstrate the technical feasibility of nuclear fusion as an energy source on earth is now being constructed in the South of France. ITER is a joint project between Europe, the United States, Russia, Japan, India, South Korea and China that is deemed larger and more complex than the international space Station ISS. DIFFER is the leading Dutch research centre for nuclear fusion and the contact point for Dutch researchers and companies who want to participate in the worldwide research into nuclear fusion. The research institute is the Dutch partner in the Horizon2020 programme EUROfusion and works together with the European domestic agency Fusion4Energy for companies who want to participate in the construction of ITER. Read more
Want to learn more about nuclear fusion?
High school physics website natuurkunde.nl covered the quest for fusion research:
- Heeft de kernfusiereactor de toekomst? (in Dutch)
- Clip about our fusion research (youtube, English with Dutch subtitles)
Research groups
Energy Systems and Control
Developing system identification techniques and control algorithms for nuclear fusion reactors - group leader: Dr.Ir. Matthijs van Berkel
Integrated Modelling and MHD
Developing theory and numerical tools for modelling fusion plasmas - group leader: Dr. Egbert Westerhof
Integrated Modelling and Transport
Prediction and control of tokamak transport within plasma simulation frameworks - group leader: Dr. Jonathan Citrin
Plasma Edge Physics and Diagnostics
Investigating complex processes in the edge of fusion plasmas with state of the art diagnostics - group leader: Dr. Ivo Classen
Plasma Material Interactions
Solving the problem of exhausting huge heat and particle loads to the reactor wall - group leader: Dr. Thomas Morgan
Plasma Micro-Turbulence
Understanding the fundamental physics of plasma instability and turbulence - group leader: Dr. M.J. Pueschel
DIFFER is a member of the EUROfusion consortium, which comprises 31 fusion research organisations and universities from 26 European member states plus Norway, Switzerland, Ukraine and the United Kingdom.
Former research
Computational Plasma Physics and Chemistry
Developing numerical models for the study of molecular plasmas - group leader: Dr. Paola Diomede