A. V. Burdakov

STATUS AND PROSPECTS OF GOL-3 MULTIPLE-MIRROR TRAP

Abstract The paper reviews recent experimental results from GOL-3. Currently efforts are focused on further development of a physical database for multiple-mirror confinement systems and also on an upgrade of plasma heating systems of GOL-3 device. In general, current GOL-3 parameters demonstrate good prospects of a multiple-mirror trap as a fusion reactor.

Plasma Heating and Confinement in GOL-3 Multi Mirror Trap

Recent results of the experiments at GOL-3 facility are presented. In present configuration of the device, plasma with a density of 1014[divided by]1016 cm-3 is confined in a 12-meter-long solenoid, which comprises 55 corrugation cells with mirror ratio Bmax/Bmin=4.8/3.2 T. The plasma in the solenoid is heated up to 2-4 keV temperature by a high power relativistic electron beam (˜1 MeV, ˜30 kA, ˜8 μs, ˜120 kJ) injected through one of the ends. Mechanism of experimentally observed fast ion heating, issues of plasma stability and confinement are discussed.

Hot electron target interaction experiments at the GOL-3 facility

At the GOL-3 facility, experiments on the interaction of powerful hot electron streams with various materials have been performed. For energy densities of the hot electron stream above 10 MJ/m2 an explosive-like erosion was observed, which at energy densities of 30 MJ/m2 reaches 500 mu m for fine grain graphite and 200 mu m for tungsten. Under these conditions, the corona of the carbon vapour cloud has temperatures below 1.2 eV and densities up to 1017 cm-3. It propagates along the magnetic field lines with maximum velocities of 2.1*106 cm/s. The longitudinal and transverse (along and across magnetic field lines) vapour velocities of the colder bulk plasma are about 106 cm/s. A model for explosive-like erosion was developed and tested against the GOL-3 results. For graphite the destruction threshold is 10 kJ/g. This value is considerably lower than the vaporization enthalpy of 20.5 kJ/g for three atomic vaporization. The validated model was applied to a numerical analysis of the occurrence of explosive-like erosion for ITER disruptions and runaway electrons. If the energy density of the runaways remains below 30 MJ/m2, explosive-like erosion of graphite occurs for electron energies below 20 MeV. For the energetic tail of Maxwellian plasma electrons with temperatures up to 20 keV and power densities of 10 MW/cm2 without any angular spread, explosive-like erasion becomes comparable to erosion by vaporization

Study of the mechanism for fast ion heating in the GOL-3 multimirror magnetic confinement system

Results are presented from experimental studies of ion heating in the GOL-3 device. The experiments were carried out in a multimirror configuration with a local magnetic well. It was found that, during the injection of a relativistic electron beam, a decrease in the local density of the beam in a magnetic well, which is proportional to the decrease in the strength of the longitudinal magnetic field, results in the formation of a short plasma region with a low electron temperature. The measured longitudinal gradient of the plasma pressure corresponds to an electron temperature gradient of ∼2–3 keV/m. Axially nonuniform heating of the plasma electrons gives rise to the macroscopic motion of the plasma along the magnetic field in each cell of the multimirror confinement system. The mixing of the counterpropagating plasma flows inside each cell leads to fast ion heating. Under the given experimental conditions, the efficiency of this heating mechanism is higher than that due to binary electron-ion collisions. The collision and mixing of the counterpropagating plasma flows is accompanied by a neutron and γ-ray burst. The measured ratio of the plasma pressure to the vacuum magnetic field pressure in these experiments reaches 0.2.

Concept of fusion reactor based on multiple-mirror trap

Abstract The paper summarizes recent advances in physics of multiple-mirror confinement. GOL-3 in Novosibirsk is the only existing large-scale device of this type. Achieved plasma parameters are: n ~ 1021 m-3, T ~ 2 keV, τE ~ 1 ms. Intense experimental and theoretical studies revealed several new collective phenomena that radically change plasma behavior in the trap as compared to simple classical theory. These phenomena are intrinsically linked to the second major feature of GOL-3, namely, fast plasma heating by a high-power relativistic electron beam. Collective beam-plasma interaction delivers energy to plasma through strong Langmuir turbulence and changes other plasma properties as well. In particular, the turbulent plasma in GOL-3 features suppressed axial heat transport, fast collective heating of ions, limitation of axial particle loss, and MHD stabilization by a magnetic shear. Mentioned phenomena greatly improve prospects of multiple-mirror confinement for fusion reactor applications. An outlook for possible fusion-scale device is presented.

Subterahertz Emission at Strong REB-Plasma Interaction in Multimirror Trap GOL-3

Abstract Investigation results for electromagnetic radiation emission induced by strong Langmuir turbulence driven by a microsecond relativistic electron beam are presented. The radiation is associated with a plasmon-plasmon merging process, which generates photons at a double plasma frequency in the range of few hundreds GHz. An original radiometric system for radiation spectrum and power measurements is described.

Progress on the Multimirror Trap GOL-3

Main results of researches on plasma heating and confinement of dense plasma in the multimirror trap GOL-3 are presented. Recently magnetic system of the facility was converted into completely multimirror one. This results in further improvement of energy confinement time of plasma with ion temperature ~1 keV. Collective plasma heating by ~120 kJ (~8 ɷs) relativistic electron beam results in Te ~ 2 keV at ~1021 m-3 density. High Te exists for ~10 μs. To this time Ti reaches ~2 keV. Ion temperature keeps at the high level during ~1 ms. The energy confinement time sufficiently increases and a value of nτE = (1.5 [divide] 3)·1018 m-3s.

Role of q Profile for Plasma Confinement in the Multimirror Trap GOL-3

Dense plasma heating by a relativistic electron beam and its confinement are studied in the multiple mirror trap GOL-3. Axial currents, which exist in the system, cause helical structure of the magnetic field. The safety factor q is shown to be below unity on the axis. Experimental data on the distribution and evolution of currents, structure of the magnetic field, and their influence on confinement and on MHD activity are discussed.

Observation of spectral composition and polarization of sub-terahertz emission from dense plasma during relativistic electron beam–plasma interaction

The paper presents results of measurements of sub-terahertz electromagnetic emission from magnetized plasma during injection of a powerful relativistic electron beam of microsecond duration in plasma with the density of 3u2009×u20091014u2009cm−3. It was found that the spectrum of the radiation concentrated in three distinct regions with high level of spectral power density. The first region is located near f1u2009=u2009100u2009GHz; the second one is in the vicinity of 190u2009GHz, and the third region is in the frequency interval f3u2009=u2009280–340u2009GHz. Polarization vectors of the emission in the first and third regions (f1 and f3) are directed mainly perpendicular to the magnetic field in the plasma. At the same time, the polarization of the radiation in the vicinity of f2u2009=u2009190u2009GHz is parallel to the magnetic field. The most likely mechanism of electromagnetic wave generation in the frequency regions f1 and f2 is the linear conversion of the plasma oscillations into the electromagnetic waves on strong gradients of the plasma density. Th...

Diagnostic system for studying generation of subterahertz radiation during beam-plasma interaction in the GOL-3 facility

The design principles and construction of the subterahertz radiometric spectral systems developed for the GOL-3 facility are described. The spectral systems are designed according to the quasi-optical scheme and use multilayer filters based on frequency-selective surfaces. The design and manufacturing technology of such elements are discussed. The results of measuring subterahertz radiation of plasma at the frequency close to the double plasma frequency are presented.