Fusion energy devices use resistive magnets to confine superheated plasma during the fusion process. Those magnets must carry current efficiently while under enormous electromagnetic forces—forces that would degrade conventional copper. So, FSU’s Shreyas Balachandran and Mehrdad Kiani are studying the use of copper-silver alloys as an alternative in resistive magnet technology.

Their Copper-Silver Alloys for Resistive Magnets (CARMA) project aims to develop scalable methods for creating nano-structured copper-silver alloys that are both strong and highly conductive. Silver, at the nanoscale, can form structures within the metal that reinforce it without sacrificing conductivity, so copper-silver alloys can resist high forces. “Our focus is to develop scalable processing strategies to obtain these nano-structures and keep the conductivity high,” says Balachandran.

• Shreyas Balachandran
• Mehrdad Kiani