15 Mar Q&A with Prof. Steffi Diem, a UW–Madison fusion scientist and 2024 U.S. Science Envoy
Steffi Diem speaking at UW–Madison’s 175th anniversary gala in October 2023. Diem, a fusion energy expert, has been named a 2024 U.S. Science Envoy, highlighting the growing national and global recognition of the role of fusion in building a clean and renewable energy future. Photo: Althea Dotzour
Steffi Diem, a University of Wisconsin–Madison professor of nuclear engineering and engineering physics, has been selected to serve as a U.S. Science Envoy for the Department of State in 2024. The federal program empowers leading U.S. scientists to leverage their expertise and networks with the goal of increasing international cooperation around important scientific endeavors.
Diem, a fusion energy expert, specializes in heating the ultra-hot fuel for fusion and confining it within efficient and compact magnetic bottles. Her selection as one of four new U.S. Science Envoys in 2024 — the program’s first all-women cohort — highlights growing national and global recognition of the role of fusion in building a clean and renewable energy future.
Formerly a national laboratory scientist, Diem joined the UW–Madison College of Engineering faculty in February 2020 as her interest in teaching, mentorship and public engagement grew. Today, she leads the college’s Pegasus-III experiment, a new U.S. Department of Energy-sponsored project aimed at developing innovative approaches to start up future fusion power plants.
Diem is also involved in Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation-funded interdisciplinary research that’s focused on reimaging fusion energy design by centering energy equity and environmental justice. University Communications recently caught up with Diem to learn more about her research efforts. Below is an edited Q&A from that conversation.