Plasma Physicist

Proxima Fusion

WHO WE ARE Proxima Fusion is Europe’s fastest-growing fusion company and the continent’s best-funded fusion player, as well as the first spin-out from the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics (IPP). Backed by over €650M and powered by a growing team across Munich, Zurich, and Oxford, we are developing the hardware and infrastructure needed to deliver the world’s first commercial stellarator fusion power plant. Our concept advances the most mature fusion technology out there, the Wendelstein 7-X stellarator, through two next-generation machines: Alpha and Stellaris. Our work combines stellarator optimization, advanced computation, machine learning, and high-temperature superconducting magnets to unlock higher-performance designs that were previously out of reach. Turning these designs into a functioning fusion power plant requires excellence and ownership across every discipline, from physics and engineering to software, manufacturing, law, and business functions. TEAM AND ROLE * Shape the architecture of the world’s first commercial fusion power plant – Own system-level decisions that determine how a first-of-a-kind energy technology is designed, integrated, and ultimately deployed at scale. * Solve some of the most complex engineering challenges in industry – Work across tightly coupled disciplines (plasma physics, magnets, cryogenics, manufacturing, controls, and more) to resolve critical trade-offs and turn cutting-edge science into a functioning product. * Build real hardware with a pragmatic, fast-moving team from all over the world – Combine advanced simulation and systems thinking with a strong execution mindset, focusing on practical engineering solutions that accelerate the path to commercial fusion energy. WHY JOIN PROXIMA FUSION Working with us, you have the chance to: * Own critical aspects of burning plasma physics that govern the viability and performance of steady-state fusion reactors. * Develop and apply state-of-the-art kinetic and hybrid simulation tools to assess plasma and reactor performance. * Translate your results directly into stellarator design decisions with reactor-scale consequences. * Contribute to the European initiative leading the critical path to a fusion power plant. * Collaborate closely with theorists, computational physicists, and engineering teams in a highly interdisciplinary environment focused on building real fusion devices. YOUR IMPACT In a fusion reactor, fusion-born alpha particles play a central role in plasma self-heating and overall reactor performance. Their confinement, transport, and interaction with collective plasma instabilities directly determine whether a burning plasma can remain stable, efficient, and economically viable. At reactor scale, energetic particle driven Alfvénic activity can enhance fast ion losses, exacerbating plasma loads on the first wall and other in-vessel components. As such, this interaction is critical to include in the design of reactor relevant magnetic configurations and their corresponding operational scenario. As an Burning Plasma Physicist at Proxima, you will lead efforts to understand, model, and optimize energetic particle behavior in reactor-scale stellarator plasmas. Your work will focus on fast-ion confinement, energetic particle transport, and bulk plasma interactions mediated through Alfvénic activity. You will develop and apply advanced numerical tools to assess alpha particle confinement, characterize instability-driven transport, and guide stellarator optimization toward robust burning plasma operation. This role offers a rare opportunity to shape the physics foundations of a commercial stellarator power plant. Your work will directly influence plasma performance, reactor operating limits, and the ability of future devices to achieve reliable steady-state fusion power. By connecting first-principles plasma physics to reactor design decisions, you will help define the path toward practical burning plasma operation in optimized stellarators. WHAT YOU WILL DO * Lead the development, validation, and application of advanced energetic particle transport workflows for assessing burning plasma physics in reactor-scale stellarator plasmas. * Investigate energetic particle driven instabilities, including Alfvén eigenmodes and related EP–MHD interactions, and assess their impact on plasma performance. * Ensure alpha particle confinement remains within the tolerable limits of plasma facing components under reactor-relevant operational scenarios. * Work closely with stellarator optimization teams to incorporate energetic particle physics constraints into magnetic configuration design. * Develop reduced-order models and analysis workflows to accelerate reactor design studies and scenario optimization. WHO YOU ARE * Hold a postgraduate degree in plasma physics, or a related discipline. * Have strong expertise in energetic particle transport, burning plasma physics, or kinetic plasma instabilities. * Bring experience studying EP–MHD interactions, including Alfvén eigenmodes, fast-ion driven instabilities, or related wave-particle interaction physics. * Have experience using advanced simulation tools for kinetic, orbit-following, gyrokinetic, or hybrid MHD modeling. * Be proficient in scientific programming languages such as Python, Julia, C++, and/or Fortran. * Be comfortable working across disciplines, collaborating closely with physicists and engineers to solve open-ended reactor design challenges. * Take initiative, communicate clearly, and be motivated by solving open-ended physics challenges critical to commercial fusion energy. INTERVIEW PROCESS * Recruiter Interview (30-60 min) * Technical Screening (30 min) * Technical Panel (3x60 min) *This role sits at L2 of our framework, please inquire during the recruitment process for further information. At Proxima Fusion, our mission is bold: making limitless clean energy a reality. To get there, we need a high-performing, diverse team that brings different perspectives, challenges assumptions, and builds together with purpose. We know that diversity of thought and experience leads to better ideas, stronger execution, and a more resilient team. We don’t look at how you identify, what you look like, who you choose to worship or what ethnicity you are. We care about what you can bring to the table.

Proxima Fusion

WHO WE ARE Proxima Fusion is Europe’s fastest-growing fusion company and the continent’s best-funded fusion player, as well as the first spin-out from the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics (IPP). Backed by over €650M and powered by a growing team across Munich, Zurich, and Oxford, we are developing the hardware and infrastructure needed to deliver the world’s first commercial stellarator fusion power plant. Our concept advances the most mature fusion technology out there, the Wendelstein 7-X stellarator, through two next-generation machines: Alpha and Stellaris. Our work combines stellarator optimization, advanced computation, machine learning, and high-temperature superconducting magnets to unlock higher-performance designs that were previously out of reach. Turning these designs into a functioning fusion power plant requires excellence and ownership across every discipline, from physics and engineering to software, manufacturing, law, and business functions. TEAM & ROLE * Shape the architecture of the world’s first commercial fusion power plant – Own system-level decisions that determine how a first-of-a-kind energy technology is designed, integrated, and ultimately deployed at scale. * Solve some of the most complex engineering challenges in industry – Work across tightly coupled disciplines (plasma physics, magnets, cryogenics, manufacturing, controls, and more) to resolve critical trade-offs and turn cutting-edge science into a functioning product. * Build real hardware with a pragmatic, fast-moving team from all over the world – Combine advanced simulation and systems thinking with a strong execution mindset, focusing on practical engineering solutions that accelerate the path to commercial fusion energy. WHY JOIN PROXIMA FUSION * You will get to work on some of the most complex tech challenges to bring abundant, safe, clean energy to the world. * You'll get to join and learn from an exceptional selection of accomplished and driven individuals. * Do your life’s best work and enjoy the journey. * Get to show that big things are possible in Europe when you assemble the best talent. YOUR IMPACT Our approach to stellarator design is rooted in parametric design defined in code, differentiable models, and fully automated analysis pipelines. It is a departure from how complex machines have historically been engineered. As a Computational Engineer, you will be a key contributor to this approach. You will own the software that defines stellarator geometry, automates multi-physics analysis, and makes complex 3D shapes optimisable. You'll use your combined understanding of engineering and computation to push the boundaries of what can be designed. You will develop new geometric representations, formulate optimisation problems, and find solutions to engineering challenges that don't have textbook answers. Sitting at the intersection of mathematics, software, and mechanical engineering, you will have direct influence over the design of the machine itself. WHAT YOU WILL DO * Define stellarators in code. Create parametric representations of reactor components; covering everything from plasma-facing walls to superconducting cables. * Automate engineering analysis. Own the code path from parametric description to CAD (e.g. CadQuery) to mesh (e.g. Gmsh) to simulation to post-processing, all running in the cloud. * Architect integrated systems. Use your ability to develop and leverage powerful computational tools to understand the trade-offs across sub-systems. * Make designs differentiable. Build JAX-based geometric and physics models so that you can optimise quantities like coil clearances, structural loads, and manufacturing constraints with gradient-based methods. * Implement algorithms for our custom 3D geometries (e.g. signed distance functions, kd-tree spatial queries, adaptive sampling, and collision detection). * Work across teams and disciplines. Collaborate directly with other mechanical engineers and simulation specialists to understand how your work can unlock them. WHO YOU ARE * Strong fundamentals in mathematics and engineering: linear algebra, geometry, numerical methods, mechanics. * Experience solving engineering or scientific problems in Python. Comfort with Git and an appreciation for well-tested, well-typed code. * The ability to communicate across disciplines. You'll work daily with plasma physicists, mechanical engineers, and software engineers, translating between domains is a core part of the job. * Curiosity and a bias toward action. We value people from all backgrounds who are motivated by hard technical problems and want to see their work have real impact. * Familiarity with computational geometry, CAD-as-code, or parametric modelling. Experience with B-splines/NURBS, Fourier representations, mesh generation, or finite element methods is valuable but not required. * Exposure to automatic differentiation (JAX, PyTorch, or similar), or a genuine interest in learning. We define geometry entirely in code and differentiability is central to how we optimise. * Demonstrated problem solving ability and learning velocity. INTERVIEW PROCESS * Recruiter Interview (30-60 min) * Technical Screening (30 min) * Case Study & Review * Technical Panel (2x60 min) *This role sits at L1 of our framework, please inquire during the recruitment process for further information. At Proxima Fusion, our mission is bold: making limitless clean energy a reality. To get there, we need a high-performing, diverse team that brings different perspectives, challenges assumptions, and builds together with purpose. We know that diversity of thought and experience leads to better ideas, stronger execution, and a more resilient team. We don’t look at how you identify, what you look like, who you choose to worship or what ethnicity you are. We care about what you can bring to the table.

Proxima Fusion

WHO WE ARE Proxima Fusion is Europe’s fastest-growing fusion company and the continent’s best-funded fusion player, as well as the first spin-out from the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics (IPP). Backed by over €650M and powered by a growing team across Munich, Zurich, and Oxford, we are developing the hardware and infrastructure needed to deliver the world’s first commercial stellarator fusion power plant. Our concept advances the most mature fusion technology out there, the Wendelstein 7-X stellarator, through two next-generation machines: Alpha and Stellaris. Our work combines stellarator optimization, advanced computation, machine learning, and high-temperature superconducting magnets to unlock higher-performance designs that were previously out of reach. Turning these designs into a functioning fusion power plant requires excellence and ownership across every discipline, from physics and engineering to software, manufacturing, law, and business functions. TEAM AND ROLE * Shape the architecture of the world’s first commercial fusion power plant – Own system-level decisions that determine how a first-of-a-kind energy technology is designed, integrated, and ultimately deployed at scale. * Solve some of the most complex engineering challenges in industry – Work across tightly coupled disciplines (plasma physics, magnets, cryogenics, manufacturing, controls, and more) to resolve critical trade-offs and turn cutting-edge science into a functioning product. * Build real hardware with a pragmatic, fast-moving team from all over the world – Combine advanced simulation and systems thinking with a strong execution mindset, focusing on practical engineering solutions that accelerate the path to commercial fusion energy. WHY JOIN PROXIMA FUSION * Work on some of the most critical physics challenges that govern the conceptual viability and optimal performance of steady state fusion reactors. * Advance the next generation of edge transport physics models (including turbulent transport characterisation, drift effects, and impurity migration) required for reactor-relevant stellarator exhaust solutions. * Apply state-of-the-art numerical models directly to hardware design decisions with reactor-scale impact. * Contribute to the European initiative leading the critical path to a fusion power plant. * Work alongside talented, mission-driven experts in a supportive, ambitious environment that is building real devices, not just reactor concepts. YOUR IMPACT You will tackle one of the defining challenges of stellarator reactors: controlling the plasma edge and exhaust in a complex 3D magnetic topology. By advancing the physics and design of the divertor, baffling, and first wall geometry, you will enable robust heat and particle exhaust - safely managing helium ash, impurities, and extreme power loads under reactor-relevant conditions. You will develop and apply state-of-the-art (and beyond) theoretical and computational models of the edge and Scrape-Off Layer, addressing non-linear multi-physics dynamics across plasma transport, equilibrium ExB flows, neutral interactions, molecular recombination, and impurity behaviour. Grounded in experimental validation and integrated with engineering constraints, your work will directly inform the design of next-generation plasma exhaust systems for commercial fusion. This is an opportunity to turn frontier edge physics into reactor-ready solutions and help close the gap between today’s modelling capability and the needs of fusion power. WHAT YOU WILL DO * As an edge transport physicist at Proxima, you will play a central role in efforts to model and design the edge and Scrape-Off Layer of real-world machines that are necessary steps on the path towards commercial fusion power. * You will develop and apply theoretical and computational models that surpass the state of the art, closing key gaps in turbulent transport, equilibrium ExB flows, molecular recombination, and impurity behaviour in the stellarator edge. * Your results and design strategy will be grounded by experimental insights, before being integrated into the design of next generation plasma exhaust systems. * Your work will involve close engagement with engineers to ensure compatibility with overall device design and reactor-relevant operating scenarios. WHO YOU ARE * Hold a postgraduate degree in plasma physics. * Strong experience in edge transport and a clear interest in translating physics understanding into a practical plasma exhaust strategy. * Bring experience using simulation and modeling to inform the geometry and operational limits of high-heat-flux systems. * Are comfortable working across disciplines, collaborating directly with engineers to frame open-ended design challenges, proposing solutions, testing ideas, and iterating quickly. * Proficient in scientific programming languages (Python, Julia, C++, and/or Fortran). * Take initiative, communicate clearly, and are motivated by building systems that will define the future of fusion energy. INTERVIEW PROCESS * Recruiter Interview (30-60 min) * Technical Screening (30 min) * Technical Panel (3x60 min) *This role sits at L3 of our framework, please inquire during the recruitment process for further information. At Proxima Fusion, our mission is bold: making limitless clean energy a reality. To get there, we need a high-performing, diverse team that brings different perspectives, challenges assumptions, and builds together with purpose. We know that diversity of thought and experience leads to better ideas, stronger execution, and a more resilient team. We don’t look at how you identify, what you look like, who you choose to worship or what ethnicity you are. We care about what you can bring to the table.