All-orders spectral calculation of radio-frequency heating in two-dimensional toroidal plasmas

Abstract

Spectral calculations of radio-frequency (rf) heating in tokamak plasmas are extended to two dimensions (2-D) by taking advantage of new computational tools for distributed memory, parallel computers. The integral form of the wave equation is solved in 2-D without any assumption regarding the smallness of the ion Larmor radius (ρ) relative to the perpendicular wavelength (λ⊥). Results are therefore applicable to all orders in k⊥ρ, where k⊥=2π/λ⊥. Previous calculations of rf wave propagation and heating in 2-D magnetized plasmas have relied on finite Larmor radius expansions (k⊥ρ≪1) and are thus limited to relatively long wavelengths. In this paper, no such assumption is made, and we consider short wavelength processes such as the excitation and absorption of ion Bernstein waves in 2-D with k⊥ρ>1. Results show that this phenomenon is far more complex than simple one-dimensional plasma models would suggest. Other applications include fully self-consistent 2-D solutions for high-harmonic fast-wave heating in spherical tokamaks. These calculations require the storage and inversion of a very large, dense matrix, but numerical convergence can be improved by writing the plasma current in the laboratory frame of reference. To accurately represent the wave spectrum in this frame, the local plasma conductivity is corrected to first order in ρ/L, where L is the equilibrium scale length. This correction is necessary to ensure accuracy in calculating the wave spectrum and hence the fraction of power absorbed by ions and electrons.