Features in Plasma Physics Webinar

Motivated by the opportunity to learn first-hand from the authors of outstanding plasma physics research, the Editors of Physics of Plasmas will invite authors of recently published featured articles to present a webinar based on their paper. Featured articles are selected by the Editors with input from referees and include novel and important research across the whole range of fundamental and applied plasma physics. Features in Plasma Physics webinars will occur monthly.

Paper Title: Continuing progress toward fusion breakeven and gain as measured against the Lawson criteria, and prospectives for private fusion

Dr. Scott C. Hsu is Fusion Partner with Lowercarbon Capital, which invests in ambitious companies, including 8 fusion companies thus far, that enable materials and energy abundance without turning the Earth into an open pit mine. Previously (2022–2025), he was Senior Advisor and Lead Fusion Coordinator in the DOE Office of the Under Secretary for Science and Innovation, where he coordinated DOE-wide fusion strategy, led a crosscutting DOE team to accelerate fusion commercialization in partnership with the private sector, and was the "chief architect" of the DOE Milestone-Based Fusion Development Program. Between 2018–2022, Scott was a Program Director at ARPA-E, where he launched and managed the BETHE and GAMOW fusion programs. Prior to ARPA-E, Scott was a research scientist at Los Alamos National Laboratory (2002–2019), where he led experimental research spanning magnetic, magneto-inertial, and inertial confinement fusion. Scott is author or co-author of 85+ peer-reviewed publications, a Fellow of the American Physical Society (APS), and a co-recipient of the 2002 APS Award for Excellence in Plasma Physics Research. Scott has testified as an expert witness in three Congressional hearings on fusion energy (2016, 2022, 2023). He earned a Ph.D. in Astrophysical Sciences (Program in Plasma Physics) from Princeton University and a B.S summa cum laude in Electrical Engineering from UCLA.

Sam Wurzel is the founder of Fusion Energy Base, a website dedicated to providing comprehensive information on organizations advancing fusion energy and its supply chain. Previously (2021–2024), he served as Technology-to-Market Advisor at ARPA-E, where he supported fusion program teams in commercialization planning, and as co-lead of the Department of Energy’s Fusion Crosscut Team, where he contributed to the development of the Milestone-Based Fusion Development Program. Prior to his work in government, Sam co-founded and served as CEO of Octopart, a leading search engine for electronic components used widely across the electronics industry. Sam earned an M.S. in Physics from the University of Colorado Boulder, where he studied experimental plasma physics, and a Sc.B. in Engineering Physics from Brown University.