China's artificial sun burns for 1000+ secs, creates record in fusion research

Since starting operation in 2006, EAST has been an open test platform for Chinese and international scientists to conduct fusion-related experiments.

China’s artificial sun, known as the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST), burned for over 1000 seconds, creating a new record for the scientist working on the project.

China's artificial sun is at a groundbreaking point in fusion research. (Representative Image)

The artificial sun maintained a steady-state high-confinement plasma operation for 1066 seconds, setting a new world record and reaching a temperature of 100 million degrees Celsius.

The Institute of Plasma Physics under the Chinese Academy of Sciences (ASIPP) scientists achieved the said record, a new benchmark in the fusion research sector. The same project held the previous record of 403 seconds.

Since starting operation in 2006, EAST has been an open test platform for Chinese and international scientists to conduct fusion-related experiments and research.

EAST has continuously achieved and surpassed the milestones it has set out in the high confinement mode, which serves as the fundamental mode for experimental fusion reactors. The reactor had previously reached 100 million degrees Celsius back in 2018.

The Chinese reactor is a leader in its field but it isn't the only one in the race. Superconducting Tokamak Advanced Research (STAR) fusion device from Korea reached a plasma temperature of 100 million degrees Celsius for 20 seconds in December 2020.

How does the fusion reaction work in an artificial sun?

In a fusion reaction, two light nuclei merge to form a single heavier nucleus. The process releases energy because the total mass of the resulting single nucleus is less than the mass of the two original nuclei. The leftover mass becomes energy.

In a bid to push for clean energy and reach such high temperatures, hydrogen isotopes are placed inside a fusion device to create a plasma state where ions and electrons are separated. During the process, ions are heated and maintained at high temperatures. The experimental reactor's main goal is to create nuclear fusion like the Sun, using deuterium from the sea to provide a steady stream of clean energy.

"A fusion device must achieve stable operation at high efficiency for thousands of seconds to enable the self-sustaining circulation of plasma, which is critical for the continuous power generation of future fusion plants," the Xinhua news agency quoted ASIPP director Song Yuntao as saying.

According to Yuntao, the fresh record by China's artificial su holds monumental significance as it is a crucial step toward the development of a fusion reactor.