UW-Madison has achieved a “major milestone” in an ongoing energy research project, announcing its fusion device has generated plasma for the first time.
Plasma is superheated material that’s often referred to as the “fourth state of matter,” distinct from solid, liquid and gas, according to an overview from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Much like heating a liquid will change it into a gas once it’s hot enough, heating a gas will lead to the formation of plasma. Importantly for the field of fusion energy research, matter heated to the temperatures required for this goal takes the form of plasma, the overview notes.
;
