France’s WEST Reactor Outperforms China’s EAST

French scientists have set a world record for the highest temperature a reactor can produce in an artificial sun. The West Tokamak in France has set a record by holding plasma for 1,337 seconds, beating the previous record set by another tokamak in China. The record is seen as a new breakthrough in the quest to create stable nuclear fusion.

Tokamak devices, also known as artificial suns, are used to replicate the processes that occur in stars. Scientists believe that these reactors have the potential to be used on Earth as a powerful and sustainable energy source using stable nuclear fusion.

The fusion reactor is operated by France’s Alternative Energies and Nuclear Energy Commission. The full name of this reactor is Tungsten Environment in Steady-State Tokamak or WEST. This reactor consists of a doughnut-like structure, in which plasma is confined by a strong magnetic field. The fusion process is observed there. It is expected to take decades to build the necessary infrastructure for large-scale energy production through such a reactor.

Replicating the extreme temperatures and pressures found in the center of a star on Earth is a challenge. Nuclear fusion requires long-term stability of the plasma. Scientists are using tokamaks to create a similar environment.

Last month, China’s advanced superconducting tokamak machine East set a record by achieving a stable plasma state for 1066 seconds. Another record of 403 seconds was set in 2023.