Keith I. Thomassen
Professor-in-Residence

Date of initial appointment

1986

Other Appointment

Staff Scientist, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, former Deputy Associate Director in Lasers

Education

B.S. Electrical Engineering, Chico State College, 1958
M.S. Electrical Engineering, Stanford University, 1960
Ph.D. Electrical Engineering, Stanford University, 1962

Field of specialization and areas of interest

Plasma science and technology: magnetic confinement schemes: fusion device and reactor design

Teaching and Research

Professor Thomassen teaches a two-course graduate sequence covering the design of fusion power plants. It focuses on the key elements and constraints in both physics and engineering that dictate the designs, and integrates results from current research on fusion energy.

Before retiring in 1999 he headed the magnetic fusion research effort at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), which includeed theory programs, an international design collaboration on the ITER device, an experimental collaboration on the DIII-D tokamak at General Atomics in San Diego, and experimental research on a spheromak at LLNL.

Recent Publications

K.I. Thomassen, "A Circuit Model for Gun Driven Spheromaks," UCRL-ID-139739, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Report, July, 2000

K.I. Thomassen, "Spheromak Power and Helicity Balance", UCRL-ID-138934 Rev. 1, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Report, May 18, 2000

K.I. Thomassen, "The SPX Bolometer Systems," UCRL-ID-137802, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Report, February, 2000

A. Ahmed, K. Thomassen, D.N. Hill, E.B. Hooper, T.K. Fowler, et al, "Power Balance Analysis for SSPX," Bull. Am. Physics Society 44, 111, (1999)

K. I. Thomassen, Sci. Editor, "Particle Fueling for Tokamaks and Helical Devices", Fusion Technology 34, 86 (Aug 98)

K. I. Thomassen, E.B. Hooper, D.D. Ryutov, "The Spheromak Path to Fusion," J. Fusion Energy, 17, 193 (1998)

D.D. Rytov, D.E. Baldwin, E.B. Hooper, K.I. Thomassen "A Hight-Flux Source of Fusion Neutrons for Material and Component Testing," J. Fusion Energy, 17, 253 (1998)

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