In the seventh episode of the Factory of the Stars Piero Martin brings us in the heart of the physics and the engineering of nuclear fusion research. In the late 50s a group of engineers and physicists at the university of Padua started a series of experiments, in particular with the Eta Beta devices. In the late 80s the Rfx Consortium was founded (its partners are University of Padua, Cnr, Enea, Infn, Acciaierie Venete). Today more than 160 people work here and two main experiments are carried forward. One is the Rfx experiment which started in 1991 and led to important results (one of them earned the Nature Physics cover in 2009). The other is the Neutral Beam Test Facility which aims at building a full-scale prototype of the Iter injector, a sort of lighter that heats Iter’s plasma with a neutral particle beam. Moreover Rfx Consortium invests in education in collaboration with the university of Padua and it offers a PhD course on physics and engineering of nuclear fusion. 

Project manager: Francesco Suman Shooting and editing by Elisa Speronello Subs: Anna Bellettato Location: Consorzio RFX, Padua