ITER (the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor, a joint venture between Europe, Japan, Russia, USA, China, India and South Korea) will need to measure a wide range of plasma parameters in order to reach and sustain high levels of fusion power and provide input to control systems with adequate reliability and long-term stability. The conference was the first appointment of the diagnostic community after the approval of ITER, and was therefore an opportunity to review the status of ITER diagnostics with particular reference to the capabilities of the present proposed systems to meet the requirements on the measurements. Critical issues related with the measurements of fast particles, fusion products, plasma facing components and radiation effects were addressed as well as new areas of diagnostic developments related with DEMO, the next step fusion reactor that will deliver electrical power from fusion.

Significant advances have been made in fusion science, and a point has been reached when we need to decide if the United States is ready to begin a burning plasma experiment. A burning plasmaâ€"in which at least 50 percent of the energy to drive the fusion reaction is generated internallyâ€"is an essential step to reach the goal of fusion power generation. The Burning Plasma Assessment Committee was formed to provide advice on this decision. The committee concluded that there is high confidence in the readiness to proceed with the burning plasma step. The International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), with the United States as a significant partner, was the best choice. Once a commitment to ITER is made, fulfilling it should become the highest priority of the U.S. fusion research program. A funding trajectory is required that both captures the benefits of joining ITER and retains a strong scientific focus on the long-range goals of the program. Addition of the ITER project will require that the content, scope, and level of U.S. fusion activity be defined by program balancing through a priority-setting process initiated by the Office of Fusion Energy Science.

This book of proceedings collects the papers presented at the Workshop on Diagnostics for ITER, held at Villa Monastero, Varenna (Italy), from August 28 to September 1, 1995. The Workshop was organised by the International School of Plasma Physics "Piero Caldirola. " Established in 1971, the ISPP has organised over fifty advanced courses and workshops on topics mainly related to plasma physics. In particular, courses and workshops on plasma diagnostics (previously held in 1975, 1978, 1982, 1986, and 1991) can be considered milestones in the history of this institution. Looking back at the proceedings of the previous meetings in Varenna, one can appreciate the rapid progress in the field of plasma diagnostics over the past 20 years. The 1995 workshop was co-organised by the Istituto di Fisica del Plasma of the National Research Council (CNR). In contrast to previous Varenna meetings on diagnostics, which have covered diagnostics in present-day tokamaks and which have had a substantial tutorial component, the 1995 workshop concentrated specifically on the problems and challenges of ITER diagnostics. ITER (the International Thennonuclear Experimental Reactor, a joint venture of Europe, Japan, Russia, and the United States, presently under design) will need to measure a wide range of plasma parameters in order to reach and sustain high levels of fusion power. A list of the measurement requirements together with the parameter ranges, target measurement resolutions, and accuracies provides the starting point for selecting a list of candidate diagnostic systems.

Proceedings of the International Conference on Advanced Diagnostics for Magnetic and Inertial Fusion, held September 3-7, 2001 at Villa Monastero, Varenna, Italy. This volume focuses on future diagnostic requirements for fusion energy research emphasizing advanced diagnostics, new techniques and areas where further progress is required.

Filling a gap in the literature, this introduction to the topic covers the physics of the standard microwave diagnostics established on modern fusion experiments, and the necessary technological background from the field of microwave engineering. Written by well-known mm-wave diagnosticians in the field of fusion physics, the textbook includes such major diagnostic techniques as electron cyclotron emission, interferometry, reflectometry, polarimetry, and scattering.

Advances in Plasma Physics Research