Magnets are at the core of many fusion power plant designs \u2014\u00a0they are what keeps the superheated matter called plasma compressed and burning hot enough to fuse atoms, which then release heat and energy. But Thea\u2019s magnets are different: Each rectangular magnet can be tuned to create the shape of the reactor\u2019s overall magnetic field.\u00a0Thea likens these to pixels in a computer monitor, which collectively follow software\u2019s instructions to create the text and images the monitor displays.<\/p>\n
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This animation shows how Helios can be disassembled for maintenance.Image Credits:Thea Energy<\/p>\n
For Thea, that flexibility will be important. The type of reactor it\u2019s designing is known as a stellarator. Stellarators are capable of keeping plasma in very stable configurations, but to do so, they have to twist and bend to accommodate the plasma. That\u2019s in contrast to tokamaks, another leading magnetic design, which uses more brute force to keep plasma confined.<\/p>\n
But the irregular shape of a stellarator drives up complexity and cost for magnet manufacturing. Thea is betting that by shrouding its reactor core in dozens of regular magnets, it can use software to control the smaller, turnable magnets and create a stellarator-shaped magnetic field inside a much simpler physical structure.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The software should also help with assembling the reactor. Thea has purposefully installed test magnets out of alignment<\/a>, but the software was able to compensate.<\/p>\n Thea hopes to complete its Eos demonstration reactor in 2030 with a commercial version, known as Helios, coming online in 2034. The timing brings it in line with competitors like Commonwealth Fusion Systems, which has said it hopes to bring its Arc reactor online in Virginia in the early 2030s<\/a>.<\/p>\n If Thea\u2019s pixel-inspired magnets work, the company could enjoy a manufacturing advantage. The startup has built dozens of iterations of its full-scale magnets in its lab in Jersey City. Meanwhile, other fusion startups pursuing magnetic confinement have had to build massive assembly halls to make reactor-scale magnets.<\/p>\n The small magnets don\u2019t do all the lifting, though. Thea uses 12 magnets of four different shapes outside the planar coils to handle most of the plasma confinement. The 300-plus smaller magnets serve to fine-tune the plasma. Being reliant on larger magnets erodes the company\u2019s manufacturing advantage to some extent.<\/p>\n Still, any simplification of a fusion reactor \u2014 which are already some of the most complex devices ever made by humans \u2014\u00a0will help pave the road to fusion power. An extra $100 million doesn\u2019t hurt, either.<\/p>\n Other investors who participated in the round include General Innovation Capital Partners, Linse Capital, Calm Ventures, Climate Capital, Divergent Capital, Emerald Technology Ventures, Gaingels, Idemitsu Kosan, Overlay Capital, Timescale Ventures, and What If Ventures.<\/p>\n Update: Thea\u2019s early designs called for the use of 12 encircling magnets. They were not added to later versions.<\/p>\n