PLD TAPE MANUFACTURE


Figure 2: REBCO layer on short tape sample


tapes made via PLD maintain superconductivity at fusion relevant field strengths of above 20 T and temperatures around 20 K, making them ideal for next-generation magnetic confinement reactors like tokamaks and stellarators.


The HTS-tape architecture — thin films on flexible metal substrates — enables winding into compact, high-field coils, crucial for space- constrained fusion devices consuming thousands of km of REBCO-tape (Figure 3). As fusion moves toward commercial viability, PLD tape production offers a scalable path to build magnets that are smaller, more efficient, and capable of sustaining the extreme conditions required for plasma confinement and ignition. Their deployment is a cornerstone in advancing magnetic confinement fusion toward practical energy generation. As a matter of fact, multiple REBCO based reactors are projected by fusion start-up companies to generate grid energy by 2035.


By then, fusion energy development is expected to consume massive amounts of REBCO tape, with estimates of up to hundreds of


Figure 3: HTS-tapes power up magnetic fusion reactors


thousands of kilometers depending on the scale and pace of reactor deployment. With about $10 billion in private fusion investment today and major players like Commonwealth Fusion Systems, Energy Singularity, Proxima Fusion and Tokamak Energy scaling up, REBCO tape intake will continue to surge.


SUPERCHARGING PLD TAPE MANUFACTURING


Today’s REBCO tape annual capacity is about 10,000 km and is provided predominantly by 300 W excimer laser powered PLD systems. As a breakthrough technology designed to scale up HTS tape production and keep fusion magnet manufacturing in line with the reported fusion milestones, the latest LEAP 600C excimer laser model from Coherent was launched in June 2025 during the Laser World of Photonics Fair in Munich, Germany.


Delivery of 600 W of laser power at the proper 308 nm wavelength, doubles the tape throughput compared to the existing PLD manufacturing systems.


Novel on-the-fly active injection technology triples the tape deposition


runtime in high-throughput environments. This ensures extended, industrial-scale batch production of tapes with minimal downtime. As current tape costs (~$100/kA-m) must drop significantly for widespread deployment also into other HTS-tape applications, LEAP features the lowest cost-per-watt ever achieved in an excimer laser of such high power-class.


Fusion is the power of the sun and has never been closer. While humankind is eagerly awaiting clean fusion energy, there is one small step towards the first net energy reactor and now one giant leap for HTS tape manufacturing.


ralph.delmdahl@coherent.com coherent.com


Ralph Delmdahl is Senior Product Marketing


Manager at the Excimer


Business Unit of Coherent in Göttingen, Germany.


LASER USER 118 DECEMBER 2025 | 21


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36