Nuclear fusion in Brazil
The only country in the Southern Hemisphere with active tokamaks.
The only country in the Southern Hemisphere with active tokamaks
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- tokamaks in operation
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- national research begins
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- TBR-1's first plasma
How it started
Nuclear fusion research in Brazil began formally in 1974, with groups created simultaneously at USP, UFRGS and UNICAMP — driven by the 1973 oil crisis.
The most symbolic milestone was the TBR-1: the first tokamak built in Brazil, 100% nationally made, with components sourced from the São Paulo electronics market and assembled by hand at USP. It achieved its first plasma at 7 million degrees Celsius.
Source: PESTANA, A. ITER: os caminhos da energia de fusão no Brasil. FUNAG.
Never seen how fusion actually happens? Start with the basics →
The two machines
Half a century later, the country still runs two tokamaks — each with a different vocation. Hover over the cards (or the map dots) to locate each machine.
- TCABRBeing upgraded
USP Institute of Physics
São Paulo (SP) · 1994 first plasma
The largest tokamak in Brazil and in the Southern Hemisphere. Currently being upgraded with innovative magnetic coils — it is expected to become the first machine of the future National Nuclear Fusion Laboratory (LFN), to be built in Iperó (SP).
Conventional tokamakLargest in the Southern HemisphereFuture LFNSource: SBPC, Jul. 2023; O Cafezinho, May 2026.
- ETEIn operation
INPE — National Institute for Space Research
São José dos Campos (SP) · 2000 first plasma
A spherical tokamak, an entirely national project started in 1995. It reached first plasma in 2000 and is used to study compact confinement configurations.
Spherical tokamakNational project
The bottleneck
Source: BARROS, M. A fusão nuclear no Brasil. defesaemfoco.com.br, 2021.
Want to understand how one of these machines works inside? See the Tokamak →
Prefer the full history of Brazil's nuclear programme? See the timeline →
And what comes next — the National Fusion Laboratory in Iperó? See the programme's future →