Gary Staebler, distinguished R&D scientist at the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), has been selected by the American Physical Society (APS) as a team of four recipients of the 2026 Lev D. Landau and Lyman Spitzer Jr. Award for Outstanding Contributions to Plasma Physics. The other team members are Ron Waltz
The Department of Energy’s (DOE) Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) has been selected for six Phase II awards under the DOE’s Genesis Mission. The six multi-year projects will advance Super Intelligence (SI)-enabled research in materials science, microelectronics, quantum computing, accelerator operations, HPC software development and fusion energy, building on work initiated during Genesis Mission Phase
A Timeline of Significant Fusion Events and Experiments at ORNL, 1950s to Today 1951 The Founding of Project Sherwood Interest in controlled thermonuclear fusion began before the start of World War II, with researchers in the United States, United Kingdom and Soviet Union performing early experiments with plasma on a device known as a “pinch”
Super Star! Vol. #1 was produced for Fusion Energy Week 2025 as educational material for the Children’s Festival of Reading, an event by the Knox County Public Library. In this issue, Sol the Sun takes young readers into the cosmos to talk about the Sun and stars, how they work, and how they effect life
ORNL’s Fusion Energy Division produces multimedia content designed to educate the general public about concepts in fusion energy and the lab’s work to make fusion energy a reality. Below is a collection of videos that cover the science behind the Material Plasma Exposure eXperiment (MPEX) and a series produced for Fusion Energy 2024 that examine
ORNL researchers are improving methods to recover tiny amounts of rare radioisotopes produced during californium-252 production. The more efficient processes increase purity and recovery while reducing workers’ radiation exposure, providing materials for research on the heaviest elements.
ORNL shipped more than two tons of its historic lithium-7 enriched FLiBe salt to Natura Resources for a new molten salt research reactor in Texas. The transfer will help accelerate development of the first U.S. salt-fueled reactor since ORNL’s Molten Salt Reactor Experiment ended in 1969.
Fusion Energy Program Points of Contact Subject Matter Leads Fusion Program Office
RENEW IGNITE Fusion Energy Educating and training the fusion workforce of the future The Initiatives to Grow New Innovate Talent to Enable Fusion Energy program, or IGNITE Fusion Energy, is a multi-institutional initiative that brings together fusion professionals from ORNL, universities, and private fusion industry to educate and train the fusion workforce of the future
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ORNL researchers developed a low-cost detector that continuously monitors air ducts at nuclear fuel cycle facilities for nuclear material buildup. The device can alert operators to potential safety and security concerns while providing more frequent monitoring than current methods.
ORNL radiochemist Lætitia Delmau was elected a 2026 American Chemical Society Fellow for her contributions to radiochemical separations, actinide science, mentoring and service. She was also named an ACS Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Division Fellow for her research, leadership and professional service.