National Academy of Sciences. - Plasma Science: Enabling Technology, Sustainability, Security, and Exploration

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This activity was supported by Grant No. PHY-1801266 from the National Science Foundation, Grant No. DE-SC0018435 from the U.S. Department of Energy, and Grant No. FA9550-18-1-0220 from the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, and by the Office of Naval Research. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of any organization or agency that provided support for the project.

International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-309-67760-8
International Standard Book Number-10: 0-309-67760-2
Digital Object Identifier: https://doi.org/10.17226/25802
Library of Congress Control Number: 2020949026
Epub ISBN: 978-0-309-67763-9

Copies of this publication are available free of charge from

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Suggested Citation: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2021. Plasma Science: Enabling Technology, Sustainability, Security, and Exploration. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/25802.

The National Academy of Sciences was established in 1863 by an Act of Congress, signed by President Lincoln, as a private, nongovernmental institution to advise the nation on issues related to science and technology. Members are elected by their peers for outstanding contributions to research. Dr. Marcia McNutt is president.

The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964 under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences to bring the practices of engineering to advising the nation. Members are elected by their peers for extraordinary contributions to engineering. Dr. John L. Anderson is president.

The National Academy of Medicine (formerly the Institute of Medicine) was established in 1970 under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences to advise the nation on medical and health issues. Members are elected by their peers for distinguished contributions to medicine and health. Dr. Victor J. Dzau is president.

The three Academies work together as the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to provide independent, objective analysis and advice to the nation and conduct other activities to solve complex problems and inform public policy decisions. The National Academies also encourage education and research, recognize outstanding contributions to knowledge, and increase public understanding in matters of science, engineering, and medicine.

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MARK J. KUSHNER, NAE, University of Michigan, Co-Chair

GARY P. ZANK, NAS, University of Alabama, Huntsville, Co-Chair

AMITAVA BHATTACHARJEE, Princeton University

PETER BRUGGEMAN, University of Minnesota

TROY CARTER, University of California, Los Angeles

JOHN CARY, University of Colorado

CHRISTINE COVERDALE, Sandia National Laboratories

ARATI DASGUPTA, Naval Research Laboratory

DANIEL DUBIN, University of California, San Diego

CAMERON G.R. GEDDES, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

GAIL GLENDINNING, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

DAN M. GOEBEL, NAE, Jet Propulsion Laboratory

DAVID B. GRAVES, University of California, Berkeley

JUDITH T. KARPEN, National Aeronautics and Space Administration

MAXIM Y. LYUTIKOV, Purdue University

JOHN S. SARFF, University of Wisconsin, Madison

ADAM B. SEFKOW, University of Rochester

EDWARD E. THOMAS, JR., Auburn University

CHRISTOPHER J. JONES, Program Officer, Study Director

JAMES C. LANCASTER, Director

NEERAJ P. GORKHALY, Associate Program Officer

AMISHA JINANDRA, Research Associate

LINDA WALKER, Program Coordinator

BETH DOLAN, Financial Associate

__________________

Member, National Academy of Engineering.

Member, National Academy of Sciences.

ABRAHAM LOEB, NAS, Harvard University, Chair

ANDREW LANKFORD, University of California, Irvine, Vice Chair

MEIGAN ARONSON, University of British Columbia

WILLIAM BAILEK, NAS, Princeton University

JILL DAHLBURG, Naval Research Laboratory

SALLY DAWSON, Brookhaven National Laboratory

LOUIS DIMAURO, The Ohio State University

WENDY FREEDMAN, NAS, University of Chicago

TIM HECKMAN, NAS, Johns Hopkins University

WENDELL T. HILL III, University of Maryland

ALAN J. HURD, Los Alamos National Laboratory

CHUNG-PEI MA, University of California, Berkeley

NERGIS MAVALVALA, NAS, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

SUNIL SINHA, University of California, San Diego

WILLIAM A. ZAJC, Columbia University

JAMES C. LANCASTER, Director

GREGORY MACK, Senior Program Officer

CHRISTOPHER J. JONES, Program Officer

NEERAJ P. GORKHALY, Associate Program Officer

AMISHA JINANDRA, Research Associate

LINDA WALKER, Program Coordinator

BETH DOLAN, Financial Associate

__________________

Member, National Academy of Sciences.

Plasma science, the investigation of ionized gases and their interactions with materials, is a discipline absolutely critical to the United States economy, national security and protection of our planet from space weather events, while also being one of the major and fundamental areas of physical science. The extraordinary reach of plasma science can be gleaned from the range of plasma-enabled technologies that the past decades have enjoyed. These span microelectronics fabrication (plasma science underpins the $1 trillion information technology industry), health care, lighting and displays, water purification, and materials synthesis. Moreover, plasma science offers unparalleled opportunities to address outstanding and critical societal problems. Not the least of these contributions is making a major impact on societys ability to address climate change and energy sustainability through the development of fusion-generated, carbon-free electricity. Plasma science is also the basis of stewardship of our nuclear deterrent. Control of intense lasers interacting with plasmas is enabling a new generation of particle accelerators that could revolutionize X-ray imaging from medicine to industry, and enable investigation of new quantum phenomena. Plasma science as a scientific discipline in its own right is remarkable in spanning a huge range of physics, contributing to and drawing from disciplines as diverse as space physics and astrophysics; materials science and engineering; atomic, molecular, and optical physics; chemistry; biology; medicine; and agriculture.