Southwestern Institute of Physics (SWIP)

The Southwestern Institute of Physics (SWIP) is a research institute within China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC), not an independent private startup. It connects plasma research on the HL-series tokamaks in Chengdu with engineering for ITER’s walls, diagnostics and associated equipment. It is organizationally separate from CAS-affiliated ASIPP; HL-3 is not another name for EAST.

CNNC dates SWIP’s establishment to 1965. Through HL-1, HL-1M and HL-2A, it accumulated magnetic-confinement research and experience designing and building large experimental facilities. Facility completion dates should be distinguished from the institute’s founding. Its work extends beyond plasma physics to reactor design, neutronics, structural materials and plasma-facing components. CNNC institute profile

ITER identifies HL-3 as the machine previously called HL-2M. It achieved first plasma in December 2020 and high-confinement-mode operation in August 2023. This copper-conductor tokamak investigates shaped plasmas and divertor configurations. Listing the old and new names as separate reactors, or describing it as the same superconducting design as EAST, would be misleading. ITER’s HL-3 research report

Official March 2025 reports describe ion temperatures of approximately 117 million degrees Celsius and electron temperatures of approximately 160 million degrees. Electrons and ions in a plasma need not have the same temperature. Fusion performance also depends on particle density and energy-confinement time. Higher temperatures alone cannot be interpreted as net electricity production or proof of a burning plasma. An institution’s experimental announcement and a completed power system are different achievements. CNNC’s 2025 announcement

Maintaining high temperatures requires more than stronger heating: instabilities and flows of heat and particles must be controlled. HL-3 investigates divertor magnetic configurations, current and density profiles, transport barriers, diagnostics and control. A divertor receives heat and particles flowing out of the plasma edge. Distributing that load must be compatible with core-plasma performance, which is why geometry and control have to be considered together.

In September 2026, CNNC reported that SWIP had passed a supplementary design review for ITER’s glow-discharge-cleaning system and secured design-and-production contracts including a boronization system. Glow discharge uses low-temperature plasma to remove residual gases and impurities from surfaces; boronization deposits a thin boron-containing coating. Tungsten tolerates high temperatures, but tungsten entering the plasma can increase radiative energy losses. Heat resistance and plasma cleanliness therefore have to be addressed together. Contribution to ITER wall conditioning

Cooperation with ITER includes operational research supporting future deuterium–tritium experiments. Such plans and high-temperature results should not be relabelled as completed D–T operation or electricity supply. Heating capability, plasma–wall interaction, fuel management and equipment reliability require staged verification. Industrially, concrete design, review and manufacturing activities for wall conditioning and diagnostics connect research with procurement. Winning a contract, finishing manufacture, delivering equipment and demonstrating it in operation are separate milestones worth tracking separately.

Reference date: 30 October 2026. Former device names, experimental achievements, design and contracts, and future plans are kept distinct.