Plasma Cross Section Research Articles

Measuring drift velocity and electric field in mirror machine by fast photography

The flute instability in mirror machines is driven byspatial charge accumulation and the resulting E × B plasma drift. Onthe other hand, E × B drift due to external electrodes or coils can beused as a stabilizing feedback mechanism. Fast photography is used tovisualize Hydrogen plasma in a small mirror machine and infer the plasmadrift and the internal electric field distribution. Using incompressibleflow and monotonic decay assumptions we obtain components of the velocityfield from the temporal evolution of the plasma cross section. The electricfield perpendicular to the density gradient is then deduced from E=-V × B. With this technique we analyzed the electric field of fluteperturbations and the field induced by electrodes immersed in the plasma.

Shape control of TIG arc plasma by cusp-type magnetic field with permanent magnet

The shape of arc plasma in gas-shielded arc welding is an important factor for the quality and efficiency of the welding. The arc plasma changes its shape by an external magnetic field because the arc is a flow of electricity and is subjected to the electromagnetic force. In this study, we examined the control of arc plasma by a cusp-type magnetic field. The field produces a high and low magnetic area alternatively, and changes the cross-section of the arc plasma from a circular to an elliptical shape. The previous study using solenoid coils to produce a cusp-type magnetic field reported that magnetized arc plasma provided deeper penetration. However, the solenoid device developed for the cusp magnetic field was too large in comparison with the size of the welding torch used for production welding. Therefore, this study investigated the magnetic control of arc plasma with permanent magnets that have recently become smaller in size and higher in intensity. Theoretical analysis model was constructed to determine the optimum arrangement of the magnets. This analysis requires a three-dimensional numerical model because the temperature-, velocity-, and electromagnetic fields of arc plasma change three-dimensionally by the additional magnetic field. It was analytically and experimentally shown in TIG arc welding that the arc shape could be elliptical cross-section even using the permanent magnets. Furthermore, our analysis showed that the effective magnetization direction of magnets was vertical, and this result was confirmed experimentally. As a result, we obtained the good bead appearance in the high-speed welding with this magnetic control.

Scattering from an elliptical cylindrical plasma for electromagnetic waves with wavelength much greater than the dimensions of the plasma cross-section

The distribution of the electric potential inside and outside a cold plasma column with elliptical cross-section when electromagnetic waves scatter from it are obtained. It is assumed that the wavelength of incident wave is much greater than the dimensions of the cross section of the plasma column. The electrical potential inside and outside a magnetized elliptical plasma column for an anisotropic scattering process are obtained. The graphs of the ratio of the electric field inside the plasma and the incident electric field versus the incident angle, the geometrical dimension of the elliptical plasma column and cyclotron frequency are presented separately. Finally, scattering of the same waves from an elliptical cylindrical inhomogeneous isotropic cold plasma is also investigated.

Radial profile measurement of electron temperature in edge stochastic magnetic field layer of LHD using intensity ratio of extreme ultraviolet line emissions

Vertical profile of neon line emissions in 30-650 Å wavelength range has been observed in horizontally elongated plasma cross section of Large Helical Device (LHD). Intensity ratio between the neon line emissions is studied to measure the radial profile of electron temperature in the edge stochastic magnetic field layer of LHD. The edge temperature profile successfully obtained from the line ratio of NeVIII 2s-3p to 2p-3s transitions is compared with the simulation based on three-dimensional edge transport code. The result shows a reasonably good agreement with the edge temperature profile analyzed from atomic data and analysis structure code. The electron temperature at last closed flux surface measured from the intensity ratio is also in good agreement with that measured from Thomson scattering.

First results from the J-TEXT high-resolution three-wave polarimeter-interferometer

A laser-based far-infrared polarimeter-interferometer system utilizing the three-wave technique has been implemented on the J-TEXT tokamak. The polarimeter determines the Faraday effect by measuring the phase difference between two collinear, counter-rotating, circularly polarized laser beams. The first results of the polarimeter-interferometer designed for J-TEXT have been obtained in the most recent J-TEXT experimental campaign. Simultaneous polarimetric and interferometric measurement is achieved, with phase resolution up to 0.1°, at bandwidth of 50 kHz. The temporal resolution, which is dependent on the laser's frequency offset, is ∼1 μs. Continual spatial measurement covering 45 cm (80% of the plasma cross-section) is realized by utilizing 1D parabolic beam expansion optics. Three initial test chords are installed and future plans call for expansion up to 30 chords with 1.5 cm chord spacing, providing high spatial resolution for measurement of electron density and current density profiles. Reliability of both polarimetric and interferometric measurement is confirmed by comparison with computation and data from a hydrocyanic acid (HCN) interferometer. With the high temporal and phase resolution, perturbations associated with the sawtooth cycle and MHD activity have been observed.

Plasma Position and Elongation Regulation at FTU Using Dynamic Input Allocation

In this paper we employ and extend the dynamic allocation theory first presented in a recent work by the last author, L. Zuccarian, to guarantee asymptotic tracking of a prescribed elongation of the plasma cross section in the Frascati Tokamak Upgrade (FTU). This task is hard to accomplish because it can only be achieved using the so-called poloidal coil, a high bandwidth actuator needed to perform high performance horizontal plasma position regulation. Another actuator, the poloidal coil, could be used for this positioning task, but its bandwidth is insufficient. Using dynamic input allocation it is possible to hierarchically achieve the two goals above by way of a nonlinear scheme suitably exploiting the two actuators: the high priority (fast) goal is the horizontal position regulation task, while the low priority (slow) goal is the elongation regulation. We present theoretical results supporting the proposed scheme, as well as simulations and experiments showing the effectiveness of the proposed solution.

Conceptual Design of Alborz Tokamak Poloidal Coils System

The Alborz tokamak is a D-shape cross section tokamak that is under construction in Amirkabir University of Technology. One of the most important parts of tokamak design is the design of the poloidal field system. This part includes the numbers, individual position, currents and number of coil turns of the magnetic field coils. Circular cross section tokamaks have Vertical Field system but since the elongation and triangularity of plasma cross section shaping are important in improving the plasma performance and stability, the poloidal field coils are designed to have a shaped plasma configuration. In this paper the design of vertical field system and the magnetohydrodynamic equilibrium of axisymmetric plasma, as given by the Grad-Shafranov equation will be discussed. The poloidal field coils system consists of 12 circular coils located symmetrically about the equator plane, six inner PF coils and six outer PF coils. Six outer poloidal field coils (PF) are located outside of the toroidal field coils (TF), and six inner poloidal field coils are wound on the inner legs and are located outside of a vacuum vessel.

Determination of electron thermal diffusivity at the WEGA stellarator

For determining the thermal diffusivity in WEGA the electron cyclotron resonance heating power from a 28 GHz gyrotron is square-wave modulated to provide a periodically varying energy source at the plasma centre causing a modulation mainly of the electron temperature Te. A fast Si-diode bolometer system, whose 16 channel view the entire plasma cross-section, is employed to monitor the heat propagation process. A fast Fourier transform analysis shows clear coherency of the line-integrated signals among different channels and monotonic radial increment of the phase delays of the fundamental components in the central channel signals, allowing the determination of the electron thermal diffusivity coefficient D. A purely diffusive heat transport is assumed and is simulated using a Monte Carlo method. The thermal diffusivity is determined by matching the simulated results to the measured ones. A typical value of D = 1.9 m2 s−1 is obtained. This value is then compared with the result based on a local power balance analysis. Within the error bars the local power balance calculation yields a similar diffusivity value. The limitations and conditions of using bolometric diagnostic for this purpose are discussed.

Influence of the shape of the cross section of a plasma-dielectric interface on the dispersion properties of high-frequency azimuthal surface modes

Theoretical study of the propagation of a packet of surface electromagnetic surface waves with a zero axial wavenumber in a circular-cross-section cylindrical metal waveguide within the frequency range that is higher than upper hybrid resonance is carried out. The waveguide is partially filled by plasma and immersed into axial magnetic field. The cross section of the plasma column is assumed to differ from circular shape. The effect of this shape on the dispersion properties of azimuthal surface modes is investigated by the method of successive approximations. The fields of the waves and their eigenfrequencies are determined up to terms of the second order in the deviation of the plasma cross section shape from the ring one. The correction to the eigenfrequency of azimuthal surface modes caused by this feature of the plasma column section is proved to increase with decreasing the external magnetic field and increasing the value of the dielectric constant of the dielectric, that separates the plasma from the metal wall of the waveguide. The spectral composition of the wave packet, in the form of which these modes propagate, is studied. The amplitudes of the satellite harmonics of these modes are found to increase with increasing the plasma density and decreasing the external magnetic field.

Plasma Equilibrium in Tokamaks

This lecture treats the magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) equilibrium of axisymmetric plasmas, as given by the Grad-Shafranov equation. In a brief introduction, equilibrium parameters such as the q-profile, the internal inductance, and the poloidal beta are introduced. The properties of these quantities will be illustrated in the case of the tokamak, by applying the large aspect ratio tokamak approximation. The properties of a non-circular plasma cross-section and the role of the vertical field will also be discussed in this approximation. Some attention is given to the (numerical) problem of solving the equilibrium equation and of reconstructing a plasma equilibrium from external measurements.

Measurement of Radiated Power Loss on EAST

A type of silicon detector known as AXUV (absolute extreme ultraviolet) photodiodes is successfully used to measure the radiated power in EAST. The detector is characterized by compact structure, fast temporal response (<0.5 s) and flat spectral sensitivity in the range from ultra-violet to X-ray. Two 16-channel AXUV arrays are installed in EAST to view the whole poloidal cross-section of plasma. Based on the diagnostic system, typical radiation distributions for both limiter and divertor plasma are obtained and compared. As divertor detachment occurs, the radiation distribution in X-point region is observed to vary distinctly. The total radiation power losses in discharges with different plasma parameters are briefly analyzed.

A study on plasma edge boundary in ergodic layer of LHD based on radial profile measurement of impurity line emissions

Vertical profiles of edge impurity emissions have been measured in upper half region of elliptical plasmas at horizontally elongated plasma cross section in large helical device (LHD). The vertical profiles near upper O-point located just below helical coil are analyzed to study the plasma edge boundary of the ergodic layer consisting of stochastic magnetic field lines with connection lengths of 30 ≤ Lc ≤ 2000 m. As a result, C3+ ion emitting CIV spectrum is identified as the ion existing in the farthest edge of the ergodic layer. The peak position of CIV (312.4 Å: 1s23p 2P1/2,3/2-1s22s 2S1/2) vertical profile does not change at all in a wide temperature range of 150 ≤ Te(ρ = 1) ≤ 400 eV, whereas it moves inside the ergodic layer when Te(ρ = 1) is reduced below a threshold temperature, e.g., 130 eV at Rax = 3.75 m configuration. It is found that the C3+ ion exists at the boundary between ergodic layer and open magnetic filed layer at which the Lc distributes in lengths of 5 to 30 m. The result indicates that the edge boundary near the O-point in LHD is determined by a starting point of the open filed layer, where a tokamak-like steeper edge temperature gradient is formed, although the edge boundary is quite obscure at the X-point region. Any plasma does not exist between the edge boundary and the vacuum vessel. The CIV profile at the O-point is simulated using a three-dimensional edge transport code of EMC3-EIRENE in which the magnetic field structure in vacuum is used for the ergodic layer. A clear discrepancy of 8 mm is found in the peak positions of CIV between measurement and simulation for magnetic configurations with thick ergodic layer, i.e., Rax =3.90 m, while only a small discrepancy of 3 mm is observed for those with relatively thin ergodic layer, i.e., Rax = 3.75 m. It suggests that the discrepancy is caused by a modification of the magnetic filed due to the presence of plasma pressure.

Using APCS for Plasma Vertical Control at TCV

Early tokamaks with circular cross-section plasmas were vertically stable in nature and no problems were reported on the control of the vertical position. However, the concept of vertically elongated plasma cross-section, with benefits to the energy confinement time, led to vertical instabilities. To overcome this problem, complex closed feedback loop control systems with a vertical position measurement, signal processing, control algorithm, power supplies and active actuating coils are used. The Tokamak a Configuration Variable (TCV) permits the stabilization of highly elongated plasmas, with a powerful vertical position control system and fast power supplies capable of response times under 0.1 ms. The introduction of the new Advanced Plasma Control System (APCS) in TCV has required the development of a new vertical position observer built to optimally exploit the capabilities of the new system and correct for the changes that were detected by the introduction of signal digitizing in the feedback loop. This paper discusses the need for a new measurement of the plasma vertical position, the method to build the observer and the validation of the measured position by comparing with previous methods and observers. A summary of the ongoing work is provided. We also discuss its aim and the goals that are expected to be achieved by exploring the new digital non-linear control algorithm capabilities of APCS.

Microwave diagnostics of ultracold neutral plasma

The microwave method is suggested to diagnose the ultracold neutral plasma. Based on the calculations of the dipole radiation, we derive the microwave scattering cross section of the ultracold neutral plasma, and microwave power scattered by the ultracold plasma is calculated as a function of time. The scattering cross section is nearly 10 − 11 m 2 .

Overview of the ITER EC H&CD system and its capabilities

The Electron Cyclotron (EC) system for the ITER tokamak is designed to inject ≥20 MW RF power into the plasma for Heating and Current Drive (H&CD) applications. The EC system consists of up to 26 gyrotrons (between 1 and 2 MW each), the associated power supplies, 24 transmission lines and 5 launchers. The EC system has a diverse range of applications including central heating and current drive, current profile tailoring and control of plasma magneto-hydrodynamic (MHD) instabilities such as the sawtooth and neoclassical tearing modes (NTMs). This diverse range of applications requires the launchers to be capable of depositing the EC power across nearly the entire plasma cross section. This is achieved by two types of antennas: an equatorial port launcher (capable of injecting up to 20 MW from the plasma axis to mid-radius) and four upper port launchers providing access from inside of mid radius to near the plasma edge. The equatorial launcher design is optimized for central heating, current drive and profile tailoring, while the upper launcher should provide a very focused and peaked current density profile to control the plasma instabilities. The overall EC system has been modified during the past 3 years taking into account the issues identified in the ITER design review from 2007 and 2008 as well as integrating new technologies. This paper will review the principal objectives of the EC system, modifications made during the past 2 years and how the design is compliant with the principal objectives.

Numerical study of precession of circulating particles in tokamaks

AbstractThe toroidal precession of circulating particles in tokamaks is studied numerically. The dependence of the precession frequency on the magnetic shear, the elongation of the plasma cross-section, and plasma pressure is investigated. It is concluded that the analytical expressions for the precession frequency by Kolesnichenko et al. (2003 Phys. Plasmas10, 1449–1457) represent a reasonable approximation for the limit cases of tokamaks with circular cross-section and shearless tokamaks with elliptical cross-section. The precession frequency was calculated for non-circular tokamaks with magnetic shear. Based on the numerical results, an interpolation formula for the precession frequency is proposed.

Experiments with “Thin” Electron Beam at GOL-3

The latest experimental campaign at the GOL-3 multiple-mirror trap was mainly aimed at features of heating and stability of the electron-beam-heated turbulent plasma. The discussed experiments feature a reduced-cross-section electron beam with the current decreased down to 1 ÷ 1.5 kA at the current density of ~1 kA/cm2 (the same as in the “full-scale” experiments). The hot plasma cross-section decreased correspondingly.Lowered current of the electron beam became less than the critical vacuum current. This gives the possibility to make a direct comparison of regimes with the beam injection into a neutral or a preliminary ionized deuterium. New experimental results will be presented on the beam relaxation in the plasma and on heating and stability of the reduced-cross-section plasma with low central safety factor q(0) ~ 0.3. Stabilization of some MHD modes by a controlled coupling of the plasma with an exit receiver plate was demonstrated.

Upgrading of Thomson Scattering System for Measurements of Spatial Dynamics of Plasma Heating in GOL-3

Thomson scattering diagnostics has been updated to allow measurements at two instants of time for either of two spatial points in plasma during a single plasma discharge. Laser produces now two 15J laser pulses with variable (0.2–100μs) delay between them. It was made possible by integration into previous laser system a second independent laser oscillator. Multichannel spectral measurements of scattered radiation can be accomplished at two spatial locations simultaneously, at z1 = 4m from the input of electron beam into plasma (old location) and at z2 = 2m (new location). Three geometries of measurement are possible: a single radial point at each of plasma cross-sections at z1 and z2 or two radial points at either cross-sections at z1 or z2. Number of radial points is limited by number of available detector channels (15ch) now. We present first experimental results with 90° detection of scattered radiation with upgraded system.

Overview of LHD Plasma Diagnostics

The Large Helical Device (LHD) is the world’s largest heliotron-type device with l = 2, m = 10 continuous superconducting helical coils and three pairs of superconducting poloidal coils. The major and minor radii of the plasma are 3.6 to 3.9 and 0.6 to 0.65 m, respectively. A plasma with an elliptic cross section confined in the helical magnetic field rotates poloidally along the magnetic axis and has no axial symmetry. For the installation of various kinds of diagnostic instruments, large-sized ports are equipped. The diameter of the largest horizontal ports is 2410 mm, which enables us to easily access the full plasma cross section with multichannel viewing chords aligned parallel to one another. For the precise measurement of plasma quantities in a three-dimensional helical plasma, an extensive set of diagnostics has been developed with national and international collaborators and is routinely operated in LHD. The diagnostic system now consists of [approximately]50 measuring instruments and includes many challenging diagnostics that have been developed and operated for the study of LHD plasma confinement. These are classified as profile diagnostics, fluctuation diagnostics, and advanced diagnostics, some of which are selected for introduction in this article. In addition, diagnostics for the divertor and for energetic particles are discussed, along with topics that are somewhat unique to helical devices such as diagnosing three-dimensional phenomena and flux surface mapping. This large number of diagnostics in LHD rely on a data acquisition system that has broken world records for the amount of information accumulated in one shot. Finally, looking to the near future, countermeasures have been taken to protect diagnostics from the neutrons and gamma fluxes anticipated during deuterium-deuterium experiments, such as placing much of the diagnostic instrumentation behind a 2-m-thick concrete biological shield encompassing the LHD test cell.

28 GHz Gyrotron ECRH on LDX

A 10 kW, CW, 28 GHz gyrotron has been implemented on LDX to increase the plasma density and to more fully explore the potential of high beta plasma stability in a dipole magnetic configuration. This added power represents about a 60% increase in ECRH to a new total of 26.9 kW with sources at 2.45, 6.4, and 10.5 GHz. The 1 Tesla resonances in LDX form small rings encompassing the entire plasma cross-section above and below the floating coil (F-coil) near the dipole axial region. A 32.5 mm diameter TE01 waveguide with a partial Vlasov step cut launches a diverging beam from above the F-coil that depends on internal wall reflections for plasma coupling. Initial gyrotron only plasmas exhibit steep natural profiles with fewer hot electrons than with the other sources. The background scattered radiation suggests that only about half the power is being absorbed with the present launcher.