Formation and Dynamics of Very Deep Negative Potential Well in the Small Tokamak Device CSTN-IV

Abstract

We achieved a potential well more than fifty times deeper than the plasma electron temperature, down to -0.3 kV with the electrode biasing, by the cross-field radial arcing current of up to 150 A which flows between the small electron-emitting electrode (LaB6) inserted to the plasma center and the stainless-steel wall of vacuum chamber. The empirical scaling of the radial resistance of plasma Rr on the radial arcing current Ib and the toroidal magnetic field BT is found to be Rr ∼ Ib-1.2BT1.0. Structural dynamics of negative potential well formation is observed: the potential dip propagates from the plasma core to the periphery. The ion saturation current also increases, starting from the inner region. The fluctuation frequency in Isat changes abruptly from 200 kHz to 30 kHz in a time of around 0.25 ms after negative biasing.