No laser fusion power plant is connected to the grid yet, but standardization is already gaining momentum. The standardization committee DKE/K 842 Laser Fusion, established in April 2025, is preparing the first proposals for standardization projects at the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). Experts from industry, research, and standardization have examined where common rules are most urgently needed. “The aim is not to anticipate technical developments or define individual solutions,” explains Dr. David Urmann, DKE project manager and committee advisor. The goal is to lay the foundations for future industrialization at an early stage.
Laser fusion – more precisely, laser-based inertial confinement fusion – mimics the process that makes the stars shine: laser pulses heat and compress a capsule only a few millimeters in size, filled with fusion fuel, known as the target. At around 100 million degrees, light atomic nuclei fuse and release energy in the process. The process takes place in four steps: heating, compression, ignition, and burn (see graphic). But even if the principle works, the road to a power plant is still a long one. Future facilities would need to fire around ten laser shots per second and process around one million highly precise targets every day – reliably and at reasonable cost.
This brings questions to the forefront that extend far beyond research. A laser fusion power plant will likely consist of hundreds of laser systems and thousands of components from different manufacturers. What is therefore needed are standardized terms, safety requirements, measurement and testing procedures, quality criteria, and interfaces. These are intended to ensure that components work together, remain interchangeable, and can be manufactured internationally. “Standardization and the development of standards are by no means merely technical details to be addressed later,” Urmann emphasizes. They could support the industrial ramp-up, provide planning certainty, and prevent misguided developments. Which technical concepts will ultimately prevail remains open. But the common foundations for them are being established now.
