Environmental Internship Program - 2023 Booklet

Stephane Morel ’25
ELECTRICAL AND COMPUTER ENGINEERING
PROJECT TITLE
Allowing Radio Frequency
Passthrough in the
Princeton Field Reversed
Configuration Neutron
Shields
ORGANIZATION(S)
Princeton Plasma Physics
Laboratory
LOCATION(S)
Princeton, New Jersey
MENTOR(S)
Samuel Cohen,
Director, Program in
Plasma Science and
Technology, Princeton
Plasma Physics
Laboratory
I investigated the possibility of creating radio
frequency penetrant neutron shields for use
in fusion research in future iterations of
the Princeton Field Reversed Configuration
fusion reactor (PFRC). This reactor would burn
deuterium-helion (D-He3) fuel, turning them
into easily stopped beta particles and protons,
in contrast to the more commonly proposed
deuterium-tritium reaction, which produces
many high-energy neutrons that quickly degrade
all known structural materials. A field reversed
configuration produces fewer neutrons, but these
must still be stopped to avoid degrading the
superconducting coils. Most neutron shielding
materials become electrically conductive at
high temperatures and would therefore block
one of the main heating methods of the PFRC.
To overcome these issues, I helped design and
conduct an experiment to test whether the radio
frequency could penetrate a shield made of
stainless steel spheres, which were being used
as a proxy for high-temperature boron. I also
conducted simulations in the programs openMC
and Ansys Electrical Workbench to optimize
the shape and size of slits in the shield, which
would provide a much simpler design. Through
this internship, I learned numerous simulation
techniques, gained hands-on experience with
radio frequency tools and acquired a more
intimate understanding of fusion research.
INNOVATION AND A
NEW ENERGY FUTURE
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