Theoretical Research in Magnetic Fusion Energy Science | Apply Online

Opportunity Summary:

The Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science, through its Fusion Energy Sciences (FES) program, released this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) to solicit grant applications for theoretical research that supports the U.S. magnetic fusion energy sciences program. The opportunity is aimed at both new and renewal proposals intended for Fiscal Year 2011 funding, and it is structured to strengthen the theory foundations that underpin experiments and computational modeling in magnetic confinement fusion, especially in tokamak-based research.

The FOA lists six core technical areas where proposals may be submitted: (1) Magnetohydrodynamics, covering large-scale plasma behavior and stability; (2) Confinement and Transport, focused on how particles, heat, and momentum move through magnetized plasmas and what limits overall performance; (3) Boundary Physics, addressing the complex plasma region near material surfaces; (4) Plasma Heating, Non-inductive Current Drive, and Energetic Particles, including the physics of external heating methods, sustaining plasma current without transformer action, and the effects of fast ions; (5) Innovative Magnetic Confinement Concepts, supporting alternative configurations beyond standard tokamaks; and (6) Atomic and Molecular Processes in Plasmas, emphasizing the microphysics important for radiation, fueling, and plasma-material interface behavior.

A central theme, and the top programmatic priority in this announcement, is developing a predictive understanding of the tokamak edge (also called the boundary plasma). FES highlights that the edge region strongly influences overall tokamak performance, affecting confinement quality, stability, and many operational limits. Because the edge includes steep gradients, turbulence, complex geometry, and strong coupling to material walls and neutral particles, it is widely seen as one of the hardest regions to model reliably. For that reason, this FOA explicitly gives priority to theory and computational work that improves understanding and predictive capability for edge physics.

To push progress faster, FES emphasizes tightly coordinated collaboration among theorists, computational scientists, and experimental teams. The FOA specifically points to collaboration with scientists at the three major U.S. magnetic fusion facilities operating at the time: DIII-D, NSTX, and Alcator C-Mod. As part of this collaboration-driven approach, FES establishes performance targets tied to understanding key edge phenomena. For FY 2011, the first year of this targeted effort, the featured milestone is a joint theory/computation/experiment advance that explains the physics mechanisms responsible for the structure of the edge pedestal. The pedestal is the high-gradient region at the edge that is closely linked to high-confinement (H-mode) operation and strongly impacts core performance and stability, so improving predictive modeling of pedestal formation and behavior is positioned as a major step toward more reliable tokamak predictions.

From an eligibility and administrative standpoint, the FOA is broadly open to domestic applicants (unrestricted eligibility across entity types) with notable exclusions: other Federal agencies, Federally Funded Research and Development Center (FFRDC) contractors, and certain 501(c)(4) nonprofit organizations that engaged in lobbying activities after December 31, 1995. Research supported under this opportunity must be based in the United States, though the announcement allows the possibility of subcontracts that include limited funding for collaborators outside the U.S. when appropriately justified. The funding instrument is a discretionary grant under the Office of Science Financial Assistance Program (CFDA 81.049), and there is no cost sharing or matching requirement stated.

The FOA also includes proposal submission constraints intended to manage limited funding. Principal Investigators who already hold continuing grants are not allowed to submit a new application in the same area(s) of interest as a previously funded application. In addition, any Principal Investigator may submit only one application per listed area of interest. Key dates included in the source information are a posted/creation date of January 28, 2010, and an application closing date of April 5, 2010, with the FOA archived on July 5, 2010. The opportunity is identified as Funding Opportunity Number DE-FOA-0000252, titled "Theoretical Research in Magnetic Fusion Energy Science," administered through the DOE Chicago Service Center, with contact points provided for both grant administration and program management.

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