Initial boronization of the DIII–D tokamak

Abstract

A system has been installed to deposit a thin film of elemental boron on the walls of the DIII–D tokamak, in order to reduce the influx of impurities during plasma discharges. Subsequently new regimes of substantially improved tokamak energy confinement were obtained. The deposition of the boron layer is achieved during a glow-discharge session using a helium-diborane gas mixture and a film of ≊100 nm is deposited. The boronization system includes special storage and handling precautions for the diborane, a delivery and metering system for the glow discharge, modifications to the tokamak’s residual gas analyzer system, and a dedicated system for handling and neutralizing the exhaust gas from the tokamak. Tokamak discharges with similar parameters before and after boronization are used to characterize the effects of the boron film. Nickel has been reduced by a factor of 30, while impurities such as oxygen and carbon are reduced fivefold. A system of pulsing the glow discharge has been developed in order to improve the uniformity of the film applied