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The basics:

• Princeton Plasma Physics Lab unveils FLARE for advanced plasma studies
• FLARE to explore magnetic reconnection, key to solar flares and fusion
• Facility offers 6M-joule energy discharges and global research access
• Collaborative model invites scientists to propose hands-on experiments

At a June 12 ribbon-cutting event, Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory unveiled a new, one-of-a-kind device that represents the next generation of research into fundamental plasma physics.

The Facility for Laboratory Reconnection Experiments (FLARE) is designed to help researchers study magnetic reconnection. The phenomenon occurs when magnetic field lines snap apart and join together again, releasing enormous amounts of energy.

“This is the day when we deliver FLARE to the world,” said PPPL Director Steve Cowley at the event, which featured officials from PPPL, the Department of Energy and Princeton University. “We have fulfilled our promise to design and build this one-of-a-kind device and offer it to the scientific community. I expect FLARE to produce important insights for plasma science in the coming years – and I just can’t wait.”

Key things to know:

• FLARE is 12 feet long, 9 feet in diameter and weighs more than 10 tons
• Reconnection occurs throughout the universe and powers giant plasma eruptions on the sun’s surface (known as solar flares); reconnection occurs inside doughnut-shaped fusion devices known as tokamaks
• Understanding how reconnection causes solar flares and tokamak disruptions can help reduce damage caused to communications networks and enhance the stability of tokamak operations
• Research will expand understanding of atmospheric disturbances that could damage satellites and power grids. Will also shed light on solar flares, the aurora borealis and fusion plasma behavior
• FLARE can store and unleash a prodigious amount of energy. For example, a FLARE experiment can discharge more than 6 million joules — the same amount of energy that power some 1,000 homes for five seconds
• FLARE’s capabilities allow it to gather information that even spacecraft cannot provide
• FLARE is a collaborative research facility. The designation means scientists from around the world can submit a research proposal and work with PPPL scientists to determine the scope of the experiment and foster long-term collaborations

“FLARE is a new research platform with capabilities that scientists have not had access to before,” said Hantao Ji, a professor of astrophysical sciences at Princeton University, a distinguished research fellow at PPPL and FLARE’s principal investigator. “It will provide information about magnetic reconnection that spacecraft, computer simulations, and other laboratory experiments cannot provide. It’s a new way of doing research that goes beyond what is currently available.”

Ready for risks

Christian Newton, chief of staff at DOE’s Office of Science, noted how FLARE demonstrates the importance of the national laboratory system. He said FLARE strengthens America’s national research efforts and provides a significant competitive edge.

“By investing in long-term scientific research, the national laboratories produce results that can bolster the rest of America’s science and technology sectors,” said Newton.

“Labs like PPPL can take big risks to build infrastructure that answers big questions,” said Jean Paul Allen, DOE’s associate director for Fusion Energy Sciences. “FLARE is a perfect example.”

Jongsoo Yoo, deputy head of discovery plasma science, a PPPL principal research physicist and a member of the FLARE team, said that FLARE’s mission goal is to help scientists broaden their understanding of reconnection as it occurs in nature – answering the question of whether reconnection can occur at multiple X points simultaneously by replicating more closely conditions as they actually occur in outer space.

“We believe that in large astrophysical systems, reconnection occurs at a large number of locations at once, but because of limitations in research space and available energy, we haven’t been able to conduct experiments to observe what happens,” said Yoo. “So far, there hasn’t been any hard evidence either way. We’re going to change that. We believe FLARE will be the first device to shower experimentally that reconnection can occur at many X points.”

Leading the way

Yoo stressed the collaborative nature of the initiative – and the hopes of partnering with scientists to develop new diagnostics, or sensors, to measure plasma properties in FLARE.

“That’s our hope,” said Yoo. “We want to work with experts around the world. Unlike with user facilities, when you submit a proposal, receive a limited amount of research time, and staff scientists perform the experiment for you and give you the data afterward – FLARE focuses more on collaboration than run time. As a result, researchers can be much more hands-on with our facility.”

Ji said FLARE matters to PPPL and the world because it’s important for both astrophysical and fusion plasma studies.

“This next-generation machine confirms that we are both a national and international leader in this research,” said Ji.

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