Abstract
New simulations of an alternate fusion reactor design reveal that it can be stable against turbulent fluctuations.
Highlights
The magnetic surfaces of modern stellarators are characterized by complex, carefully optimized shaping and exhibit locally compressed regions of strong turbulence drive
In the regime where the length scale of the turbulence is very small compared to the equilibrium scale set by the variation of the magnetic field, the strongest fluctuations form narrow bandlike structures on the magnetic surfaces
Stabilization persists through the suppression of the large eddies, leading to a reduced stiffness for the heat flux dependence on the ion temperature gradient
Summary
Max-Planck-Institut für Plasmaphysik, Wendelsteinstrasse 1, 17491 Greifswald, Germany (Received 12 February 2016; published 7 June 2016). The great challenge for both tokamaks and stellarators is to provide stable and robust plasma confinement with minimal energy losses The latter are caused by plasma turbulence and by so-called neoclassical transport, which results from the random walk taken by plasma particles moving along complicated orbits in the magnetic field while colliding with each other [4]. A theoretical method to understand and, ideally, predict the behavior of turbulence is furnished by “gyrokinetics” [10], according to which the fully kinetic description of the plasma is reduced by one dimension, owing to the fast gyration of the charged particles around the magnetic field lines Despite this simplification, the coupled system of nonlinear partial differential equations is five dimensional (plus time) and can only be solved by numerical codes, such as GKV-X [11], GS2 [12], and GENE [13], with the help of modern supercomputers.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
