Dr Kate Lancaster: Is it Possible to Build a Star on Earth?

Dr Kate Lancaster is a lecturer and programme leader for the Msc in Fusion Energy, part of the physics department at the University of York. She received her PhD in Advanced Fast Ignition Studies (a form of laser driven fusion) from Imperial College. A post-doctoral position was followed by a permanent research position at the Central Laser Facility, before joining the York Plasma Institute in 2012. Kate’s research expertise is in ultra-intense laser-plasma interactions and is based around understanding the absorption of those lasers and the subsequent transport of energy. Dr Lancaster has been active in the communication of science for many years. She speaks at events, festivals, and schools and has appeared as an expert on both television and radio. Her talk is the story of how, in the absence of a lab the size of a star, we are attempting to make fusion into an energy source for the future using some of the world’s most powerful lasers.