Tomographic analysis of the nonthermal x-ray bursts during disruption instability in the T-10 tokamak.

Abstract

Non-thermal x-ray radiation (Eγ up to 150 keV) is measured in the T-10 tokamaks during disruption instability using two sets of CdTe detectors (10 vertical and 7 horizontal view detectors). Special narrow cupper tubes collimators with lead screening and CdTe detectors integrated with amplifiers inside metallic containers provides enhanced spatial resolution of the system (r ∼ 3 cm) and assures protection from the parasitic hard x-ray (Eγ up to 1.5 MeV) and electromagnetic loads during disruption. Spatial localization of the nonthermal x-ray emissivity is reconstructed using tomographic Cormack technique with SVD matrix inversion. Analysis indicated appearance of an intensive non-thermal x-ray bursts during initial stage of the disruptions at high density. The bursts are characterized by repetitive spikes (2-3 kHz) of the x-ray emissivity from the plasma core area. Analysis indicated that the spikes can be connected with acceleration of the non-thermal electrons in enhanced longitudinal electric fields induced during energy quench at the disruption instability.