Raphael Unterrainer is a Ph.D. student at the Atominstitut of the University of Technology in Vienna. As part of his Ph.D., he is looking into high-temperature superconductors and how they behave when they are irradiated.
In fusion, neutron irradiation is inherent to the system – you always have neutrons coming from the D-T fusion processes in the plasma. But with time, these neutrons are harming the superconductor. Fusion magnets in planned fusion reactors like ITER and DEMO are far enough away to withstand these neutrons for a long time, however in smaller reactor designs, e.g. SPARC, they are expected to be broken after only nine years. This drastically reduces the economic feasibility. Raphael and his group are therefore trying to find a way to extend the expected lifetime of superconductors through heat treatments.
In this interview Raphael talks about why the work of his group is so important for future fusion reactors, but he also explains why in his opinion time and resources are the biggest challenges in this field of research. As far as his future is concerned, there are several options for him. One possibility would be to go into the industry or to move to the UK or the USA, but he could also imagine staying in Austria should something come up.
To learn more about Raphael, his work and why nuclear fusion research was actually his plan B, watch the interview below.