“Problems Looking for Solutions“
The FY2026 INFUSE Workshop will take place at Oak Ridge National Laboratory on November 5-7, 2025. The goal is to create opportunities for anyone interested in INFUSE projects to make new connections with representatives from industry, national laboratories and universities. Participants will learn about the INFUSE program, the private-public partnership process, and the most recent INFUSE project application call.
On days two and three attendees will participate in poster sessions, discussions about the CRADA process, and receive information about the most recent request for assistance. There will also be opportunities to schedule time with representatives from national labs and universities to discuss possible collaboration.
Agenda:
Wednesday, November 5, 2025
8:00am – 5:00pm – ORNL lab tours (times are tentative)
Thursday, November 6, 2025
8:00am – Registration open and poster setup (Main Lobby)
9:00am – Welcome, Opening, and Safety (Lumsdaine)
9:15am – DOE Perspective (FES)
9:30am – Poster lightning talks – Capabilities Posters
10:00am – INFUSE in PPP (Nehl)
10:15am – Coffee break + Poster discussions
11:00am – INFUSE fusion industry (Holland)
11:45am – Poster lightning talks – Technical Posters
12:15am – Lunch (on site) + Poster discussions
1:15pm – INFUSE RFA Kick-Off (Lumsdaine)
1:50pm – Panel – “Challenges and opportunities in the CRADA process”
- Profiles for the panelists available here.
3:05pm – Coffee break / Poster discussions
3:45pm – Panel – “Challenges and opportunities in a dynamic PPP environment”
- Profiles for the panelists available here.
5:00pm – GAIN presentation (Lohse – remote)
5:30pm – Closing remarks & INFUSE program updates – End of Day 1 (Lumsdaine)
Friday, November 7, 2025
8:00am – Registration and breakfast
8:30am – Recap of Day 1 / Poster discussions
9:00am – Supply chain panel
- Profiles for the panelists available here.
9:30am – ORNL welcome (Hubbard)
9:45am – Supply chain panel, part 2
10:30am – Coffee break / Poster discussions
11:15am – ITER Data Sharing (Greenfield)
11:45am – Lunch (on-site) + Poster discussion
1:00pm – Townhall Meeting (Lumsdaine)
2:30pm – Close of Workshop
3:00pm – Optional tour of ORNL high performance computing capabilities – contact Jessica Black ([email protected]) if interested
Capabilities Posters
| Title | Presenter | Affiliation |
|---|---|---|
| Oak Ridge National Laboratory Capabilities | Arnold Lumsdaine | Oak Ridge National Laboratory |
| Lawrence Livermore Laboratory Capabilities | C. Goyon | Lawrence Livermore Laboratory |
| Numerical modeling of liquid lithium flows for plasma facing components | Daniel Suarez | University of Tennessee |
| Facilities and Knowledge Base at the Brookhaven National Laboratory for Fusion R&D | Ramesh Gupta | Brookhaven National Laboratory |
| Argonne National Laboratory Capabilities for INFUSE | Thanh Hua | Argonne National Laboratory |
| Fusion Science and Engineering: Materials Fabrication and Extreme Environment Testing | Christopher DeSalle | Penn State Applied Research Lab |
| INFUSE – Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory Capabilities | Erik Gilson | Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory |
| The Lehigh Advantage: A Unique Synergy of Physics, Control, and AI/ML | Eugenio Schuster | Lehigh University |
| Capabilities for Fusion Materials and Technology R&D at Sandia National Laboratories | Robert Kolasinski | Sandia National Laboratories |
| REBCO R&D at Fermilab | Maria Baldini | Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory |
| Fast Optical Diagnostics Development and Machine Learning Applications for Transport Research in MFE Plasmas | George McKee | University of Wisconsin-Madison |
| INL’s experimental and computational capabilities for fusion technology development | Masashi Shimada | Idaho National Laboratory |
| Collaborative Fusion Research at SNRL | Christopher S. Dandeneau | Savannah River National Laboratory |
| HTS Cable Solenoid Testing: 12 T, 160 mm bore, 10 kA Facility | Daniel Davis | MagLab – Florida State University |
Technical Posters
| Title | Presenter | Affiliation |
|---|---|---|
| Hermes-3: A Versatile Modeling Tool for Magnetically Confined Plasma | Ben Zhu | Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory |
| ML-assisted Exhaust Design and Control in MFE Systems | Ben Zhu | Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory |
| ORNL Portable Diagnostic Package for Evaluating Mirror Performance | Theodore Biewer | Oak Ridge National Lab |
| Evaluating the impact of lead-lithium purity on tritium transport | Max Monange | EX-Fusion Inc. |
| High Energy Pulsed Laser Amplification Using Optical Enhancement Cavities | Morgan Pattison | Blue Laser Fusion |
| Addressing compatibility challenges in future fusion power plants | Marie Romedenne | Oak Ridge National Lab |
| Machine learning informed multi-scale modeling of plasma-facing components | Rinkle Juneja | Fusion Energy Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory |
| Scalable Surface Finishing Technologies for Next-Generation Fusion Energy Systems | Joshua Boykin, PhD | REM Surface Engineering |
| Westinghouse’s Activities and Capabilities in Support of Fusion Technology Development | Paolo Ferroni | Westinghouse Electric Company LLC |
| Fusion Innovation Bootcamp: Advancing Public-Private Partnerships to Drive Fusion Energy Solutions | Yuqiao (Joy) Fan | Oak Ridge National Lab |
| Advanced Grade 91 Steel Welded Joints Characterization and Properties Testing | Wei Tang | Oak Ridge National Laboratory |
| Design of charged-particle diagnostics operating at moderate repetition rates to advance direct-drive laser fusion energy | Xavier Vaisseau | Focused Energy |
| Mechanical Characterization of PFC Candidate Fine-Grain Dispersion-Strengthened Tungsten Materials | Gabriel D. Parker | Oak Ridge National Laboratory |
| Design of proton diagnostics operating at high repetition rate to advance proton fast ignition | Xavier Vaisseau | Focused Energy |
| Enabling Fusion Everywhere: Applying OR-SAGE and Advanced Siting Methodologies | Gale Hauck | Oak Ridge National Laboratory |
| Simulation study of the effects of beam ions on stability properties of kinetic FRCs | Elena Belova | PPPL |
| ESnet – The Network as an Scientific Instrument | David Martin | Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory |
| Status and Future Vision for Building a Tritium Facility Operating Experience Body of Knowledge to Support Commercial Fusion Power Plant Safety Case Development and Licensing | Diana Grandas | EPRI |
| High performance Interference coatings for Blue Laser Fusion optical enhancement cavity | Carmen S. Menoni | Colorado State University |
| Solenoid Free Plasma Startup with Transient CHI | Roger Raman | University of Washington |
| Radiation Hardened Imaging Systems For Fusion Diagnostics | Marcos Sanchez | Advanced hCMOS Systems |
| Developing Fusion Digital Twins | Hamilton Parrish | Co-Founder of Morton Labs |
| 3D Magnetohydrodynamics Analysis for Advanced Liquid Metal Blankets | Andrei Khodak | PPPL |
Registration Fees and Deadlines:
- Early registration is $250 until
August 29, 2025extended to September 15, and increases to $350 thereafter. - Registration for US Registrants will close on October 27, 2025.
- Registration for Non-US Registrants will close on September 30, 2025
Information about area hotels:
Each location has a limited amount of rooms available. The cut off deadline, for the courtesy block, is October 14, 2025.
Homewood Suites – 10935 Turkey Dr. Knoxville, TN 37934
SpringHill Suites – 10955 Turkey Dr. Knoxville, TN 37934
DoubleTree Oak Ridge – 215 S. Illinois Ave. Oak Ridge, TN 37830
Staybridge Suites – 420 S. Illinois Ave. Oak Ridge, TN 37830
Holiday Inn Express & Suites – 114 Tulsa Rd. Oak Ridge, TN 37830