‘Stealth’ fusion experiment gets $50 million

Little more information was available Monday about the experiments at the company, Tri-Alpha Energy, or the funding itself. In the past, Socaltech reported, Tri-Alpha has received funding from Goldman Sachs, Venrock, Vulcan Capital and New Enterprise Associates.

Tri-Alpha’s experiments, based on the work of UC Irvine plasma physics professor Norman Rostoker, have been rumored for years, but the company has not revealed the nature of its experiments to the public.

Solcaltech calls it a “stealth developer of advanced plasma fusion technology.”

Controlling fusion — the same energy source that powers the sun — has been a pursuit of researchers for decades. Unlike nuclear fission, the splitting of uranium atoms that powers nuclear energy plants, fusion — the fusing of hydrogen atoms — would not produce high-level nuclear waste.

There is a large international effort to develop controlled fusion, known as ITER, but the Orange County effort involves private investors.

OCRegister