For sustainable, non-carbon dioxide emitting, long-term energy production, nuclear fusion energy is widely perceived to be the ultimate terrestrial energy source. Fusion energy is experiencing a rapid period of investment, innovation, and growth that has never been seen before. As of today, many governments are enabling and funding public fusion energy projects, such as the UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) whilst private fusion companies work towards commercialising fusion energy. Private fusion companies have received approximately $4.9 billion of private funding to date, with a high % invested in 2021 alone. The industry has been gaining momentum and this decade should yield milestone results to demonstrating fusion energy as a real source of energy. However, fusion energy environmental conditions for the structural and functional materials are extreme and still unsolved. This talk will discuss the latest commercial and technical developments in the industry.

Presenter: Dr Thomas Davis

Dr Thomas P Davis is the President and Chief Technology Officer of Oxford Sigma, a R&D company that develops fusion materials technology whilst providing technical, materials, and regulatory support to the nuclear and fusion industry. He holds multiple patents and has published > 10 fusion-related scientific papers. He has a PhD in Materials Science from the University of Oxford.