Teaching and Research

Prof. Morse teaches the department's three one-semester courses relating to nuclear fusion science and fusion reactor technology: NE 180, Introduction to Controlled Fusion, NE 280, Fusion Reactor Engineering, and NE 281, Fully Ionized Plasmas. These courses cover many aspects of the physics and technology of proposed fusion reactors as well as current experiments in nuclear fusion, of both the magnetic confinement and the inertial confinement approaches. Prof. Morse also teaches the laboratory course Nuclear Engineering 104B, Nuclear Engineering Laboratory, which includes experiments relevant to reactor thermal hydraulics and nuclear materials as well as nuclear fusion. Prof. Morse also teaches course EECS 100 in the Electrical Engineering Department, Electronic Circuits for Engineering. This course is the basic non-major course in electrical engineering in the College of Engineering.

One of Prof. Morse's research projects involves the study of the spheromak fusion confinement scheme as an approach to magnetically confined nuclear fusion. This study involves experimental plasma physics and theoretical studies of MHD behavior and nonlinear radiofrequency wave propagation. This effort also includes an experimental study of the effects of boron coatings on plasma-facing components. Another project involves the development of the Rotating Target Neutron Source (RTNS) as a tool for investigating radiation damage in fusion materials. A study of the radiation damage properties of nonlinear optical crystals for use in the National Ignition Facility laser fusion device at Livermore is currently underway.