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NEWS – As of September 1, 2025, the MPRL has received a major award from the National Science Foundation for operating the laboratory. The MPRL will continue to serve the community as a multi-user, collaborative research facility, but with additional options for runtime and logistical support. We will participate n the 2025 Call for Runtime Proposals, but – in the weeks ahead, we will develop a new coordinating plan for future collaborative projects. We will be making announcements ahead of the American Physical Society – Division of Plasma Physics meeting in November, 2025.
The Magnetized Plasma Research Laboratory (MPRL) is funded by the National Science Foundation with additional support from the Department of Energy – Office of Fusion Energy Sciences (DOE-OFES). The MPRL is one of the plasma physics research laboratories in the Auburn University Physics Department. The primary mission of the MPRL is to study plasmas under the influence of strong magnetic fields. In particular, the MPRL has unique capabilities to study the physics of magnetized dusty plasmas.
Hardware used in the MPRL has been supported by the Department of Energy, National Science Foundation – Major Research Instrumentation program (NSF-MRI), NSF/DOE Partnership in Basic Plasma Science and Engineering, and NASA.
While the primary mission of the MPRL is focused on plasma physics, our research facilities are highly flexible and can accommodate a variety of experiments that require access to a steady-state (up to days), uniform (less than 1% ripple), high magnetic field (up to 4 T) environment.
The centerpiece of the MPRL is the Magnetized Dusty Plasma Experiment (MDPX) device: a 4-Tesla class, multi-configuration, superconducting magnet that features a 50 cm diameter x 158 cm long “warm bore”. Within the bore of the magnet, a wide variety of experimental hardware can be accommodated.