Interferometer Vibration Sensitivity Reduction

General Fusion (GF) is a private company developing a magnetized target fusion scheme to compress a plasma to fusion conditions with a liquid metal liner for the purposes of producing energy. The plasma density is an important parameter that must be measured during a shot to evaluate the performance of the machine. An interferometer is a diagnostic that measures plasma density by sending a laser beam through the plasma and measuring the change in the beam’s phase. GF has a working interferometer on its plasma formation machine, PI3. However, there are issues with vibration that affect the quality of the density measurement. These issues will become even more significant on future plasma compression machines. The objective of this project is to reduce the interferometer vibration error by identifying the source of these issues and modifying the optics and beam path to improve the diagnostic.

Faculty Supervisor:

Jordan Morelli

Student:

Partner:

General Fusion Inc

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Manufacturing; Professional, scientific and technical services; Utilities

University:

Queen's University

Program: