Radial Particle Transport Research Articles

Counteracting sawtooth crash effects via fluctuation-induced inward transport in HL-2A NBI plasma

The Langmuir probe observed an increase in density and floating potential fluctuations after the sawtooth crash at the edge of HL-2A neutral beam injection heated plasma. This process initiates fluctuating-induced radial inward particle transport once the plasma enters a period with strong sawtooth crash. The inward transport comprises broad-band fluctuations with varying scales, which occur uniquely in the immediate aftermath of the sawtooth crash-driven outflow, signifying a transient phenomenon confined to that specific interval. These results demonstrate that the sawtooth crash can significantly impact edge turbulence by modifying electrostatic fluctuations. This modification changes the direction of electric fluctuation-induced particle transport, thereby reducing the influence of the intense sawtooth crash-driven outflow. Furthermore, the observations support the existence of a damping mechanism for the outflow during the formation of inward flux after the sawtooth crash, which may be associated with the recovery process of sawtooth cycle.

Role of gas composition in weakened nonlinear standing wave excitation and improved plasma radial uniformity in very-high-frequency asymmetric capacitive Ar/CF4 discharges

The higher harmonics generated by nonlinear sheath motion would enhance the standing wave effect, and thus lead to center-peaked plasma density profile in very-high-frequency (VHF) capacitive discharges. In this work, a nonlinear transmission line (NTL) model introduced in Zhou et al (2021 Plasma Sources Sci. Technol. 30 125017) has been extended, with radial transport of various particles and nonlinear sheath motion into account, to investigate the effects of CF4 fraction α on the nonlinear standing wave excitation and plasma radial uniformity in VHF (60 MHz) capacitively coupled Ar/CF4 plasmas at 3 Pa. The results indicate that for pure Ar discharges (i.e. α= 0%), the nonlinearly excited harmonics with short wavelength significantly enhance the electron power absorption at the radial center, resulting in a pronounced central-high plasma density profile. As α increases, the high-order harmonics are gradually damped due to the increase of resistance, as well as the longer wavelength caused by thicker sheath thickness. Thus, the radial profile of the electron absorbed power density shifts from center-peak to edge-high. Besides, at the radial center, the electron density and Ar+ ion density decrease with α , CF3 + ion density shows an increasing trend, while F− ion density initially rises and then decreases. Moreover, the density profiles of all the species become more uniform at higher CF4 fraction, due to the suppressed nonlinear standing wave excitation and the longer wavelength of the nonlinear harmonics.

Observation of turbulence-induced reduced electrostatic particle flux in the presence of QL whistlers in large laboratory plasma

The electrostatic particle flux is measured in the presence of obliquely propagating quasi-longitudinal (QL) whistler turbulence (ωci<ωLH≈ω<ωce) in the large-volume plasma device (LVPD). The QL whistler is observed with frequency band between 40 and 100 kHz, and the characteristic wave numbers k∥≪k⊥ are excited by the reflected energetic electrons via loss cone (localised mirror type magnetic geometry) formation in the presence of a transverse magnetic field [BEEF(x̂)] of electron energy filter and axial magnetic field of LVPD [Bo(ẑ)]. The effect of mirror strength on radial particle flux is explored by changing the BEEF as this variation changes the excited QL-whistler turbulence. We observed that the increase in QL-whistler turbulence level, the radial particle transport, i.e., the radial particle flux subsides, is accompanied by particle flux direction reversal from radially inward to outward.

Spatial Distribution Analyses of Axially Long Plasmas under a Multi-Cusp Magnetic Field Using a Kinetic Particle Simulation Code KEIO-MARC

To realize the development of a long plasma source with a uniform electron density distribution in the axial direction, the spatial distribution of plasma under a multi-cusp magnetic field was analyzed using a KEIO-MARC code. Considering a cylindrical plasma source with an axial length of 3000 mm and a cross-sectional diameter of 100 mm, in which the filament electrode was the electron source, the electron density distribution was calculated using the residual magnetic flux density, Bres, and the number of permanent magnets installed at different locations surrounding the device, Nmag, as design parameters. The results show that both Bres and Nmag improved the uniformity of the electron density distribution in the axial direction. The maximum axial electron density decreased with increasing Nmag and increased with increasing Bres. These trends can be explained by considering the nature of the multi-cusp field, where particles are mainly confined to the field-free region (FFR) near the center of the plasma column, and the loss of particles due to radial particle transport. The use of multiple filaments at intervals shorter than the plasma decay length dramatically improved axial uniformity. To further improve axial uniformity, the filament length and FFR must be properly set so that electrons are emitted inside the FFR.

Turbulence simulations with BOUT++ by using SOLPS grids for SOLPS/BOUT++ coupling

AbstractThe coupling of transport code SOLPS with the turbulence code BOUT++ was reported in Reference [D. R. Zhang et al., Phys. Plasmas 26, 012508 (2019)], while the grids of SOLPS and BOUT++ are not completely consistent with each other, especially in the divertor region. In the present work, a method of replacing the grids of BOUT++ with the grids of SOLPS is proposed to make the simulation region fully consistent with each other for the SOLPS/BOUT++ coupling. A SOLPS grid file is generated with an MHD equilibrium and used in BOUT++ code to simulate the profiles of plasma density, ion temperature, and electron temperature with the six‐field two‐fluid model. The profiles of the main plasma parameters simulated with the SOLPS grids are similar with the profiles simulated with the BOUT++ grids at the midplane, while the profiles are deformed compared with the profiles simulated with the BOUT++ grids at the outer divertor target because of the differences of the distributions of SOLPS grids and BOUT++ grids in the divertor region. The radial particle transport coefficient and heat transport coefficients are also calculated by using the BOUT++ code with the two grids, and the comparisons of the radial particle transport coefficient and heat transport coefficients simulated with the two grids at the midplane and outer divertor target plate are discussed.

Plasma Wave and Particle Dynamics During Interchange Events in the Jovian Magnetosphere Using Juno Observations

AbstractInterchange instability is known to drive fast radial transport of particles in Jupiter's inner magnetosphere. Magnetic flux tubes associated with the interchange instability often coincide with changes in particle distributions and plasma waves, but further investigations are required to understand their detailed characteristics. We analyze representative interchange events observed by Juno, which exhibit intriguing features of particle distributions and plasma waves, including Z‐mode and whistler‐mode waves. These events occurred at an equatorial radial distance of ∼9 Jovian radii on the nightside, with Z‐mode waves observed at mid‐latitude and whistler‐mode waves near the equator. We calculate the linear growth rate of whistler‐mode and Z‐mode waves based on the observed plasma parameters and electron distributions and find that both waves can be locally generated within the interchanged flux tube. Our findings are important for understanding particle transport and generation of plasma waves in the magnetospheres of Jupiter and other planetary systems.

Absolute electron density fluctuation reconstruction for two-dimensional hydrogen beam emission spectroscopy.

Scrape-off layer (SOL) and edge plasma turbulence significantly contribute to the radial particle and heat transport, lowering the plasma confinement and increasing the heat load on the plasma facing components. SOL turbulence is predominantly intermittent, which manifests in the occurrence of isolated density filaments or blobs. Filaments propagate radially outward toward plasma facing components, limiting their lifetime by erosion and sputtering. To characterize this phenomenon in detail, few diagnostic techniques are available. Beam emission spectroscopy is a diagnostic capable of measuring plasma turbulence in both SOL and edge plasmas. Due to the finite lifetime of the excitation states during the beam-plasma interaction and the misalignment between the optics and the magnetic field, spatial smearing is introduced in the measurement. In this paper, a novel method is introduced to overcome this hindering effect by inverting the fluctuation response matrix on an optimally smoothed signal. We show that this method is fast and provides significantly more accurate absolute density fluctuation reconstruction than the direct inversion technique. The presented method is usable for all types of beam emission diagnostics where the spatial resolution is higher than the combined smearing of the atomic physics and the observation.

Two-dimensional reconstruction of filament temperatures and densities with the thermal helium beam at ASDEX Upgrade

In the scrape-off layer (SOL) of fusion plasmas, radial particle and energy transport is mainly carried by plasma filaments. The plasma parameters of such filaments can be measured by the thermal helium beam diagnostic (THB). By means of an extended collisional radiative model (CRM) used for the evaluation of the diagnostic data, the light intensity response of neutral helium transitions from filaments is studied, which depends on the parameters of the filament and the background. The electron density of the filament is found to be the dominant parameter impacting the line intensities. By applying a numerical reconstruction algorithm based on the CRM, electron temperatures and densities as well as the sizes of experimentally measured filaments are obtained. This method allows for the first time measurements of the temporal decay rates of filament density and temperature in the co-moving frame of the filament and its radial propagation velocity.

Quantitative comparison of impurity transport in turbulence reduced and enhanced scenarios at Wendelstein 7-X

We assess the turbulent particle transport being responsible for the limitation of the confinement and, thus, the overall performance of the neoclassically optimized stellarator Wendelstein 7-X. The radial particle transport is experimentally inferred from the evaluation of impurity injection into turbulence reduced and enhanced plasma scenarios revealing a completely different confinement behavior. The impact of the density gradient on the turbulent ion transport is theoretically estimated using large-scale non-linear gyro-kinetic simulations enabling, for the first time in Wendelstein 7-X, a quantitative comparison to the experimentally assessed impurity transport properties. We demonstrate that impurity transport in most of the Wendelstein 7-X discharges, up to now impossible to cover only with neoclassical estimations, is dominated by turbulence and can be modelled via gyro-kinetic simulations.

Edge turbulence transport during ELM suppression with n = 4 resonant magnetic perturbation on EAST

The edge turbulence characteristics and the induced radial transport have been investigated in edge localized mode (ELM) suppression by using the 4 resonant magnetic perturbation coils on EAST, with 3.6 and the electron collisionality 0.5. During ELM suppression, the edge turbulence is enhanced dramatically, as measured by the reciprocating probe and the poloidal correlation reflectometry. In the near SOL, the low frequency turbulence (<30 kHz) has a large fluctuation level and propagates along the ion diamagnetic drift direction with a speed of 0.35 km s−1 in the plasma frame; an electromagnetic mode around 120 kHz with a small (∼0.15 cm−1) appears when the ELM is suppressed; weak broadband turbulence between 40–120 kHz propagates in the electron diamagnetic drift direction with a velocity of 3.4 km s−1 in the plasma frame. During the ELM suppression, the radial turbulent particle flux, calculated in both the time and frequency domains, is much higher (can be up to five times) than that in the inter-ELM phase. Furthermore, the low frequency turbulence (<30 kHz) dominates the cross-field particle transport. The 120 kHz electromagnetic mode also contributes to outward particle flux, which is relatively small. A set of CGYRO simulations are performed to illustrate the nature of the 120 kHz electromagnetic mode and the low frequency turbulence, suggesting that the former is the micro-tearing mode and the latter is the ion temperature gradient mode. The bispectral analysis suggests a strong three-wave coupling between the low frequency and high frequency turbulence (>250 kHz), which could be beneficial to form the observed turbulent transport. The estimated upstream cross-field particle flux is consistent with the total particle flux deposited on divertor targets, demonstrating that the enhanced radial turbulent particle transport is an important mechanism for particle exhaust in ELM suppression.

Argon doped pellets for fast and efficient radiative power removal in ASDEX Upgrade

Argon doped deuterium pellets with about 1 per mille Ar atomic fraction have been injected into ASDEX Upgrade H-mode discharges and demonstrate fast and efficient power removal from the outer plasma region. Bolometer views directly on the pellet and in its very close vicinity observe a strong, non-toroidally symmetric radiation pattern on a fast, sub-ms time scale. This pattern is explained by the ionisation process of the delivered Ar neutrals, leading to non-coronal radiation by intermediate ionisation stages until the equilibrium He like stage is reached. Subsequently, a toroidally symmetric radiation increase is observed with a fast initial decay time of about 20 ms consistent with the radial particle transport time scale for a source located in the outer plasma. In the following, a radiation pattern related to Ar recycling develops comparable to the pattern observed with Ar midplane gas puffing which decays with the Ar divertor pumping time of about 200 ms. The energy radiated around each pellet is described by the radiative potential of Ar evaluated for non-coronal conditions with the ablation time as the relevant time scale. A factor 4 too low radiated energy is obtained by this simple model, which could be explained by stronger deviations from corona equilibrium and plasma parameter variations in the vicinity of the pellet. Injection of Ar-doped pellets into a no-ELM quasi-continuous exhaust H-mode discharge showed no triggering of ELMs by the pellet. Advantages of the pellet seeding scheme are the faster reaction time of the radiation compared to gas puffing, which may be important to counter-act transient re-attachment in ITER or in a reactor and an elevated radiative efficiency in the outer core plasma due to non-corona effects.

Runaway dynamics in tokamak disruptions with current relaxation

The safe operation of tokamak reactors requires a reliable modelling capability of disruptions, and in particular the spatio-temporal dynamics of associated runaway electron currents. In a disruption, instabilities can break up magnetic surfaces into chaotic field line regions, causing current profile relaxation, as well as a rapid radial transport of heat and particles. Using a mean-field helicity transport model implemented in the disruption runaway modelling framework Dream, we calculate the dynamics of runaway electrons in the presence of current relaxation events. In scenarios where flux surfaces remain intact in parts of the plasma, a skin current is induced at the boundary of the intact magnetic field region. This skin current region becomes an important centre concerning the subsequent dynamics: it may turn into a hot ohmic current channel, or a sizeable radially localized runaway beam, depending on the heat transport. If the intact region is in the plasma edge, runaway generation in the countercurrent direction can occur, which may develop into a sizeable reverse runaway beam. Even when the current relaxation extends to the entire plasma, the final runaway current density profile can be significantly affected, as the induced electric field is reduced in the core and increased in the edge, thereby shifting the centre of runaway generation towards the edge.

Self-consistent formation and steady-state characterization of trapped high-energy electron clouds in the presence of a neutral gas background

This study considers the self-consistent formation and dynamics of electron clouds interacting with a background neutral gas through elastic and inelastic (ionization) collisions in coaxial geometries similar to gyrotron electron guns. These clouds remain axially trapped as the result of crossed magnetic field lines and electric equipotential lines creating potential wells similar to those used in Penning traps. Contrary to standard Penning traps, in this study, we consider a strong externally applied radial electric field which is of the same order as that of the space-charge field. In particular, the combination of coaxial geometry, strong radial electric fields, and electron collisions with the residual neutral gas (RNG) present in the chamber induce non-negligible radial particle transport and ionization. In this paper, the dynamics of the cloud density and currents resulting from electron–neutral collisions are studied using a 2D3V particle-in-cell code. Simulation results and parametric scans are hereby presented. Finally, a fluid model is derived to explain and predict the cloud peak density and peak radial current depending on the externally applied electric and magnetic fields, and on the RNG pressure.

Simulation studies of tungsten impurity behaviors during neon impurity seeding with tungsten bundled charge state model using SOLPS-ITER on EAST

An investigation into tungsten (W) impurity behaviors with the update of the EAST lower W divertor for H-mode has been carried out using SOLPS-ITER. This work aims to study the effect of external neon (Ne) impurity seeding on W impurity sputtering with the bundled charge state model. As the Ne seeding rate increases, plasma parameters, W concentration (), and eroded W flux () at both targets are compared and analyzed between the highly resolved bundled model ‘jett’ and the full W charge state model. The results indicate that ‘jett’ can produce divertor behaviors essentially in agreement with the full W charge state model. The bundled scheme with high resolution in low W charge states (<W20+) has no obvious effect on the Ne impurity distribution and thus little effect on W sputtering by Ne. Meanwhile, parametric scans of radial particle and thermal transport diffusivities ( and ) in the SOL are simulated using the ‘jett’ bundled model. The results indicate that the transport diffusivity variations have significant influences on the divertor parameters, especially for W impurity sputtering.

The Possible Formation of Jupiter from Supersolar Gas

More than two decades ago, the Galileo probe performed in situ measurements of the composition of Jupiter’s atmosphere and found that the abundances of C, N, S, P, Ar, Kr, and Xe were all enriched by factors of 1.5–5.4 times their protosolar value. Juno’s measurements recently confirmed the supersolar N abundance and also found that the O abundance was enriched by a factor 1–5 compared with its protosolar value. Here, we aim at determining the radial and temporal evolution of the composition of gases and solids in the protosolar nebula (PSN) to assess the possibility that Jupiter’s current composition was acquired via the direct accretion of supersolar gases. To do so, we model the evolution of a 1D α-viscous accretion disk that includes the radial transport of dust and ice particles and their vapors, with their sublimation and condensation rates, to compute the composition of the PSN. We find that the composition of Jupiter’s envelope can be explained only from its accretion from PSN gas (α ≤ 10−3), or from a mixture of vapors and solids (α > 10−3). The composition of the PSN at 4 au, namely between the locations of the H2O and CO2 icelines, reproduces the one measured in Jupiter between 100 and 300 kyr of disk evolution. Our results are found to be compatible with both the core accretion model, where Jupiter would acquire its metallicity by late accretion of volatile-rich planetesimals, and the gravitational collapse scenario, where the composition of proto-Jupiter would be similar to that of the PSN.

Global fluid simulation of plasma turbulence in a stellarator with an island divertor

Results of a three-dimensional, flux-driven, electrostatic, global, two-fluid turbulence simulation for a five-field period stellarator with an island divertor are presented. The numerical simulation is carried out with the GBS code, recently extended to simulate plasma turbulence in non-axisymmetric magnetic equilibria. The vacuum magnetic field used in the simulation is generated with the theory of Dommaschk potentials, and describes a configuration with a central region of nested flux surfaces, surrounded by a chain of magnetic islands, similar to the diverted configurations of W7-X. The heat outflowing from the core reaches the island region and is transported along the magnetic islands, striking the vessel walls, which correspond to the boundary of the simulation domain. The radial transport of particles and heat is found to be mainly driven by a field-aligned coherent mode with poloidal number m = 4. The analysis of this mode, based on non-local linear theory considerations, shows its ballooning nature. In contrast to tokamak simulations and experiments, where blobs often contribute to transport, we do not observe the presence of intermittent transport events.

SOLPS-ITER analysis of drift effects on plasma profiles in the EAST scrape-off layer

Drift effects on the plasma profiles of the scrape-off layer (SOL) in the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST) have been numerically investigated using the comprehensive 2D edge modeling package, SOLPS-ITER, based on a generic magnetic equilibrium with lower single null configuration. SOL particle diffusivity (D SOL) has been scanned from high (1.0 m2 s−1) to extremely low (0.02 m2 s−1), to gradually highlight the role of drift-based neoclassical mechanisms in radial particle transport. To address the impact of magnetic field direction on drift-driven transport, plasma profiles, flows and currents in the SOL of EAST plasmas, with the toroidal magnetic field (B T) direction favorable and unfavorable for H-mode access, i.e. with the ion B × ∇B drift pointing towards and away from the active X-point, are simulated and analyzed. Results demonstrated that drift-driven transport, considered as the key process in the formation of SOL plasma profiles, is dependent on magnetic field direction and thus SOL flows and currents, as well as SOL widths, can obviously be affected by the direction of drifts. With B T changed from the favorable direction to the unfavorable one, the flattening of the density radial profile as well as the increase in power decay length, in the SOL, can be achieved and can be further enhanced as the weight of turbulent transport (i.e. D SOL) gets reduced, due to the increased contribution of ion parallel viscosity to the radial ion flow. In particular, with D SOL ⩽ 0.05 m2 s−1 in the simulations, the dominant role of drift-based neoclassical mechanisms in the radial particle transport will lead to the formation of the so-called edge density-shelf in plasmas with unfavorable B T. The power scrape-off width in plasmas with unfavorable B T is very insensitive to the turbulent transport level and can remain relatively high even when D SOL has been decreased to an extremely low level. Due to the compressing/widening effect of the drift-driven inward/outward radial particle flow, the simulated power scrape-off width exhibits an in-out asymmetry, which is also dependent on magnetic field direction . This work represents a step towards a deeper understanding of the physics mechanisms determining SOL widths in EAST.

A self‐consistent mean‐field model for turbulent particle and heat transport in 2D interchange‐dominated electrostatic ExB turbulence in a sheath‐limited scrape‐off layer

AbstractIn this paper, a self‐consistent model for the average radial turbulent transport of heat and particles in 2D anisothermal interchange‐dominated electrostatic ExB drift turbulence in sheath‐limited scrape‐off layers is presented. Diffusion models are used for the turbulent particle and heat fluxes, in which the transport coefficients scale with the square root of the turbulent kinetic energy (). The interchange drive proves to be the main source of turbulent kinetic energy, while the sheath term provides the main sink. These observations are qualitatively the same as for the isothermal case studied earlier. An analytical relation for the interchange term is derived, showing that the turbulent ExB thermal energy flux is the direct driver for through the interchange source. A series decomposition of the sheath term in the equation shows it includes a sink contribution that was also present in the isothermal case, but also a new source due to the sheath‐driven conducting‐wall (SCW) instability caused by electron temperature fluctuations. Using a simple regression model to close the total sheath term, a closed model for the turbulent transport is obtained. The interchange drive due to the ExB energy flux leads to a self‐saturation mechanism in the model, where the gradients and turbulence intensity increase until a sufficient transport level is reached to carry the power and particles across the field lines to find a balance with the sheath sink. An implementation of this model in a 1D mean‐field code approximates the profiles of the turbulence simulations with remarkable accuracy in part of the parameter space, while the error increases in parameter regimes where the relative importance of the SCW term is varied.

Radial Transport of Energetic Electrons as Determined From the “Zebra Stripes” Measured in the Earth’s Inner Belt and Slot Region

The “zebra stripes” are drift-periodic structures present in the form of peaks and valleys in energetic (tens to hundreds of keV) electron spectrograms in the Earth’s inner belt and slot region. Their characteristics inform of preceding electric field disturbances. Specifically, their amplitude contains information on the radial transport of trapped particles generated by azimuthal electric field disturbances. We introduce a method to quantify radial transport from the measured amplitude of the zebra stripes, and we apply it to the zebra stripes observed on 16 February 2014. The findings are compared with results from a particle tracing code that leverages an empirical analytical model for the electric field disturbances. The measured amplitude of the zebra stripes indicates that the electric field disturbances transported the trapped population coherently, over radial distances spanning several hundreds to thousands of kilometers. The magnitude of radial transport is shown to depend on angular drift frequency and initial location (equatorial radial distance and magnetic local time) in the disturbance. The model-observation comparison suggests that the timing for electric field variations provided by the model is valid for studying radial transport in the inner belt and slot region. On the other hand, we found discrepancies when comparing radial transport magnitudes. When assuming that radial transport varies as L3, as weakly suggested by the data for set angular drift frequencies, and extrapolating observations to L = 1, the amount of experimental transport obtained is two to three times greater than numerical estimates. Outputs from the standalone version of the Rice Convection Model (RCM) suggests that the electric field disturbances are likely greater than the estimates provided by the empirical model. RCM also supports the idea that radial transport driven by the prompt penetration of magnetospheric convection varies as L3 in the inner belt and slot region.

Effects of radial transport on divertor power and particle flux widths under different operational regimes in EAST

A study of the effects of radial transport on the outer divertor particle and power flux widths (λ js and λ q ) is carried out using plasmas under different operational regimes in the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST). In the EAST experiments, the λ js values measured during the grassy intra- and inter-ELM phases are similar, and the averaged value of λ js during grassy ELMy discharges is found to be smaller than that of the intra-ELM phase of type-I ELMy discharges but larger than that of the inter-ELM phase of type-I ELMy discharges. Simulations of scans of the radial particle and heat transport coefficients, D and χ e, performed using the BOUT++ transport code show that both λ q and λ js increase with D and χ e, especially when D or χ e is larger than a threshold value, indicating that background turbulence starts to matter in the determination of λ q and λ js when D or χ e surpasses the threshold value. A comparison between the simulation of the D scan and the experimental results shows that the different values of λ js obtained under different plasma operational regimes are probably due to the different intensities of background turbulence, which is beyond the scope of Goldston’s heuristic drift-based model as reported by Goldston et al (2012 Nucl. Fusion 52 013009), since their model was derived by assuming that turbulent transport does not exceed a certain level. The ratio of λ js to λ q is greatly affected by the radial transport; however, simulations carried out using Scrape-off Layer Plasma Simulation (SOLPS) show that divertor geometry and plasma density have big influences on λ js , and thus could also affect the ratio of λ js to λ q .