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General Fusion reaches 1 keV electron temperature milestone

General Fusion reaches 1 keV electron temperature milestone

New Capabilities

Lawson Machine 26 hits 12.6 million degrees Celsius, a world-first for low-speed compression

October 8th, 2026: LM26 results paper posted

Overview

Updated Oct 13

General Fusion's LM26 machine heated plasma electrons past 1 kilo-electron volt (keV), about 12.6 million degrees Celsius, using a metal wall to compress plasma over milliseconds. The result, co-published with the UK Atomic Energy Authority, is a world-first for low-speed compression.

The technical paper reports electron temperature peaked at 1,180 eV, a fivefold increase during compression. The company's next targets are 10 keV, then the Lawson criterion by end of 2028, on the path to a commercial plant around 2035.

Why it matters

If General Fusion's approach scales, fusion plants could be cheaper and more durable than laser or magnet designs, accelerating clean baseload power.

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Key Indicators

1.1 keV
Electron temperature (Thomson scattering)
Measured just prior to peak compression on LM26, co-verified with UKAEA.
12.6M °C
Equivalent electron temperature
More than 1 keV, the industry-recognized milestone threshold.
5x
Electron temperature increase
Plasma electron temperature rose more than fivefold during compression.
2.75x
Radial compression factor
Plasma compressed by a factor of 2.75, driving the fivefold temperature increase.
0.46 keV
Ion heating
Ion temperature rose up to twofold above starting temperature, inferred from neutron yield and diagnostic data.

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Organizations Involved

General Fusion
General Fusion
Fusion energy company
Achieved 1 keV electron temperature on LM26; technical paper submitted for peer review

Vancouver-based fusion company developing Magnetized Target Fusion technology.
UK Atomic Energy Authority
UK Atomic Energy Authority
UK national fusion laboratory
Co-published the 1 keV results with General Fusion

The UK's national fusion research laboratory.

Timeline

3 events Latest: October 8th, 2026 · 1 month ago

  1. LM26 results paper posted

    Latest Publication

    Technical paper on LM26 compressional heating results posted on General Fusion's website and submitted for peer review, showing peak electron temperature of 1,180 eV.

  2. 1 keV milestone announced

    Milestone

    General Fusion and UKAEA announce 1 keV electron temperatures on LM26, a world-first for low-speed compression.

  3. SEC filing details LM26 results

    Regulatory

    General Fusion filed an 8-K with the SEC detailing the LM26 results, including peak electron temperature of 1,180 eV and ion heating to 0.46 keV.

Scenarios

1

General Fusion hits 10 keV on upgraded LM26

Likely Resolves by End of 2027

Discussed by: General Fusion's stated roadmap

The company says upgrades to LM26 are underway to support higher compression ratios needed for 10 keV, roughly 100 million degrees Celsius. If successful, this would be the second major milestone on the path to commercialization.

2

General Fusion achieves Lawson criterion by end of 2028

Possible Resolves by End of 2028

Discussed by: General Fusion's stated roadmap

The company targets the Lawson criterion—the combination of temperature, density, and confinement time for net fusion energy in the plasma—by the end of 2028. This depends on the 10 keV milestone being met first.

3

General Fusion begins operating first-of-a-kind plant around 2035

Uncertain Resolves by End of 2035

Discussed by: General Fusion's stated goal

The company aims to begin operating a first-of-a-kind fusion plant around 2035. This depends on the 10 keV and Lawson criterion milestones being met, plus the commercial systems program now being prepared.

4

General Fusion switches to liquid metal liner for commercial reactor

Uncertain Resolves by End of 2030

Discussed by: General Fusion (via The Globe and Mail)

Once LM26 reaches the desired plasma energy, General Fusion plans to switch from a solid to a liquid metal liner around the plasma. This would allow a reactor to compress plasma in a repeating cycle rather than single shots, enabling power generation.

Historical Context

2 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

December 2022

NIF ignition (December 2022)

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory's National Ignition Facility produced 3.15 megajoules of fusion energy from 2.05 megajoules of laser energy, achieving ignition for the first time. The experiment used 192 lasers to compress a tiny fuel capsule.

Then

The result was hailed as a major milestone for inertial confinement fusion, though the facility is not designed for power generation.

Now

NIF's achievement showed fusion ignition is possible, but commercial power from inertial confinement remains a distant goal.

Why this matters now

Shows a different fusion approach reaching a major milestone, and the long path from scientific breakthrough to commercial power.

December 2023

JET's final experiment (December 2023)

The Joint European Torus in Oxfordshire set a world record of 69 megajoules of fusion energy in its final experiment, using a deuterium-tritium fuel mix. The tokamak had been operating since 1983.

Then

JET was decommissioned after the record, with its results informing the ITER project.

Now

JET's data helps validate the tokamak approach for ITER, the international fusion project under construction in France.

Why this matters now

Shows the tokamak approach's progress and the different technical paths to fusion energy.

Sources

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General Fusion GOV.UK GlobeNewswire arXiv StockTitan SEC EDGAR New Civil Engineer ANS Nuclear Newswire The Globe and Mail General Fusion General Fusion General Fusion