In response to Persis Drell’s commentary on the present state of the US particle-physics program (Physics Today, June 2012, page 8), I would like to suggest that one possibility for its future direction may be found just a few pages later in the same issue (page 25). The US fusion program has stalled, partly because funding is now going to ITER, but also because of a lack of new ideas for how to get the job done.
Having worked a bit in both fusion and particle physics, I can appreciate how the programs relate. A fusion reactor, by any fundamental description, requires expertise in almost every area covered by high-energy physics: Confining the plasma is a problem for quantum electrodynamicists, getting the nuclei to fuse is a problem for quantum chromodynamicists, and I’m sure there would be something for the weak-force folks to do. By focusing its efforts on the design, construction, and operation of a working fusion reactor, the particle-physics community can make itself beneficial to humanity and relevant to the American taxpayer, thus ensuring a healthy level of funding for years to come.
