AI can now control fusion plasma faster than humans can react
Researchers at Princeton University have developed an AI-driven framework called PACMAN to manage plasma instability in fusion reactors. The system can make split-second adjustments to magnetic fields, which is faster than human operators can react.
Why it matters
Controlling plasma instability is a critical hurdle in making nuclear fusion a viable, long-term source of clean energy.
In some fusion systems, particles hotter than the core of the sun can become unstable within just a few thousandths of a second. That is far too fast for a human operator to respond. Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) and Princeton University have developed a new software framework that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to make those rapid decisions while maintaining strict safety controls and leaving people responsible for setting the system's objectives.
The framework is called PACMAN (a novel abbreviation for Prediction And Control using MAchiNe learning). Researchers successfully tested it on a real fusion system in five separate experiments. Its design and initial results are described in a new paper published in the journal Nuclear Fusion .
AI Takes on Fusion's Millisecond Challenge
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