10/30/2026 Phillip Kisubika
Written by Phillip Kisubika
Advancing nuclear technology requires reliable instrumentation, pathways for safe deployment and a workforce prepared to work across disciplines. Those challenges helped shape discussions at the IEEE Nuclear Energy and Applications Workshop, hosted October 19–20 at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
The two-day workshop brought together experts from academia, industry, national laboratories, government agencies and international institutions to identify critical gaps and emerging opportunities in nuclear science and technology. Presentations and conversations covered advanced fission, microreactors, nuclear medicine, instrumentation, energy storage and the societal dimensions of nuclear technology.
Provost John Coleman and The Grainger College of Engineering Dean Rashid Bashir opened the workshop with remarks emphasizing Illinois’ role in advancing nuclear research, technology and innovation.
For organizer Angela Di Fulvio, an associate professor in the Department of Nuclear, Plasma and Radiological Engineering, the workshop’s value came from bringing together people whose expertise does not always overlap—and examining what is needed to turn promising technologies into practical applications.
In a reflection shared after the event, Di Fulvio highlighted three areas that stood out: instrumentation and monitoring, the transition from innovation to deployment, and workforce development and interdisciplinary collaboration.
Next-generation nuclear systems will require sensing, monitoring and control technologies that can operate reliably in environments where conventional approaches fall short. Participants explored the need for advances in these supporting technologies alongside developments in reactor and energy system design.
Discussions also addressed the steps between technological innovation and deployment. Qualification, standards, licensing and security frameworks must keep pace with emerging technologies to support their safe and timely use.
Preparing people to work across those technical and institutional boundaries was another recurring theme.
“The future of nuclear energy requires more than nuclear engineers,” Di Fulvio wrote. “We need closer connections across disciplines, industry, policymakers, and society, and a workforce prepared to bridge those boundaries.”
Contributors included representatives from the Czech Republic’s Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science, adding international and historical perspectives to the technical discussions.
The workshop also featured the exhibition “Enrico Fermi: The Chicago Years,” brought to the event by the Italian Cultural Institute of Chicago. The exhibition provided historical context for conversations about nuclear technology’s future.
Sponsors and supporters included the IEEE Nuclear and Plasma Sciences Society, IEEE SusTech, Illinois NPRE, the Center for Advanced Study, the European Union Center and ACDIS.
Beyond the scheduled presentations, informal exchanges gave participants opportunities to connect their work and explore possible collaborations. Di Fulvio noted that some of the most valuable conversations took place between sessions, where different perspectives met and new possibilities for working together emerged.