T. L. Rhodes

Physics of confinement improvement of plasmas with impurity injection in DIII-D

External impurity injection into L mode edge discharges in DIII-D has produced clear confinement improvement (a factor of 2 in energy confinement and neutron emission), reduction in all transport channels (particularly ion thermal diffusivity to the neoclassical level), and simultaneous reduction of long wavelength turbulence. Suppression of the long wavelength turbulence and transport reduction are attributed to synergistic effects of impurity induced enhancement of E × B shearing rate and reduction of toroidal drift wave turbulence growth rate. A prompt reduction of density fluctuations and local transport at the beginning of impurity injection appears to result from an increased gradient of toroidal rotation enhancing the E × B shearing. Transport simulations carried out using the National Transport Code Collaboration demonstration code with a gyro-Landau fluid model, GLF23, indicate that E × B shearing suppression is the dominant transport suppression mechanism.

The role of zonal flows and predator–prey oscillations in triggering the formation of edge and core transport barriers

We present direct evidence of low frequency, radially sheared, turbulence-driven flows (zonal flows (ZFs)) triggering edge transport barrier formation preceding the L- to H-mode transition via periodic turbulence suppression in limit-cycle oscillations (LCOs), consistent with predator–prey dynamics. The final transition to edge-localized mode-free H-mode occurs after the equilibrium E × B flow shear increases due to ion pressure profile evolution. ZFs are also observed to initiate formation of an electron internal transport barrier (ITB) at the q = 2 rational surface via local suppression of electron-scale turbulence. Multi-channel Doppler backscattering (DBS) has revealed the radial structure of the ZF-induced shear layer and the E × B shearing rate, ωE×B, in both barrier types. During edge barrier formation, the shearing rate lags the turbulence envelope during the LCO by 90°, transitioning to anti-correlation (180°) when the equilibrium shear dominates the turbulence-driven flow shear due to the increasing edge pressure gradient. The time-dependent flow shear and the turbulence envelope are anti-correlated (180° out of phase) in the electron ITB. LCOs with time-reversed evolution dynamics (transitioning from an equilibrium-flow dominated to a ZF-dominated state) have also been observed during the H–L back-transition and are potentially of interest for controlled ramp-down of the plasma stored energy and pressure (normalized to the poloidal magnetic field) in ITER.

Development of technology and techniques for reflectometry

Development efforts are directed at advanced reflectometry systems for next generation tokamaks such as ITER. Laboratory tests have been successfully completed for a pulsed radar reflectometer (τ≂200 ps) to be tested on DIII‐D. In addition, there exists a need for sources and components beyond those commercially available. Monolithic quasi‐optical spatial power combined arrays of solid state devices will provide continuous, watt level swept source coverage up to 200 GHz as well as electronically controlled beam steering, focusing, and modulation. Studies are also underway to address the feasibility of instantaneous profile coverage using monolithic impulse generators (τ≂1–3 ps) comprised of spatially combined nonlinear transmission lines, employing novel quantum barrier varactors.

Interpretation of core localized Alfven eigenmodes in DIII-D and Joint European Torus reversed magnetic shear plasmas

Reversed shear Alfven eigenmodes (RSAE) that were observed in the Joint European Torus (JET) [P. H. Rebut and B. E. Keen, Fusion Technol.11, 13 (1987)] and DIII-D [J. L. Luxon, Nucl. Fusion42, 614 (2002)] are studied with the ideal magnetohydrodynamic code NOVA-K [C. Z. Cheng, Phys. Rep.211, 1 (1992)]. It was found that the frequency behavior of the RSAEs can be described accurately by the NOVA-K code when plasma compressibility effects and toroidal plasma rotation are taken into account. For the mode activity on JET, the calculated drive exceeds the mode damping rate, consistent with experimental observations, while on DIII-D the growth rate from neutral beam ions for modes with high toroidal mode numbers is insufficient to account for the excitation of the modes and a major part of the drive comes from the background plasma.

Edge dimensionless identity experiment on DIII-D and Alcator C-Mod

Experiments were carried out to study the similarity of H-mode (high confinement mode) physics on the Alcator C-Mod [I. H. Hutchinson et al., Phys. Plasmas 1, 1511 (1994)] and DIII-D [J. L. Luxon, Nucl. Fusion 42, 614 (2002)] tokamaks comparing plasmas with matched local edge dimensionless parameters (β, ρ*, ν*, q95) and shape (e, κ, δ). It was observed that matching local values of the dimensionless parameters on top of the H-mode pedestals produces similar Te and ne profiles across the entire pedestal region, with pedestal width scaling linearly with the machine size. Furthermore, in H-modes with matched pedestals, similar edge fluctuations were observed. Discharges in DIII-D with scaled pedestal parameters similar to those of C-Mod EDA (enhanced D-alpha) H-mode showed a quasicoherent mode localized to the outer half of the pedestal, similar to the C-Mod quasicoherent mode (QC mode). The wavenumber of the mode observed on DIII-D matches the wavenumber of the C-Mod QC mode if scaled with the machine size...

Discovery of stationary operation of quiescent H-mode plasmas with net-zero neutral beam injection torque and high energy confinement on DIII-D

Recent experiments in DIII-D [J. L. Luxon et al., in Plasma Physics and Controlled Nuclear Fusion Research 1996 (International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna, 1987), Vol. I, p. 159] have led to the discovery of a means of modifying edge turbulence to achieve stationary, high confinement operation without Edge Localized Mode (ELM) instabilities and with no net external torque input. Eliminating the ELM-induced heat bursts and controlling plasma stability at low rotation represent two of the great challenges for fusion energy. By exploiting edge turbulence in a novel manner, we achieved excellent tokamak performance, well above the H98y2 international tokamak energy confinement scaling (H98y2u2009=u20091.25), thus meeting an additional confinement challenge that is usually difficult at low torque. The new regime is triggered in double null plasmas by ramping the injected torque to zero and then maintaining it there. This lowers E × B rotation shear in the plasma edge, allowing low-k, broadband, electromagnetic turbul...

Non-perturbative measurement of cross-field thermal diffusivity reduction at the O-point of 2/1 neoclassical tearing mode islands in the DIII-D tokamak

Neoclassical tearing modes (NTMs) often lead to the decrease of plasma performance and can lead to disruptions, which makes them a major impediment in the development of operating scenarios in present toroidal fusion devices. Recent gyrokinetic simulations predict a decrease of plasma turbulence and cross-field transport at the O-point of the islands, which in turn affects the NTM dynamics. In this paper, a heat transport model of magnetic islands employing spatially non-uniform cross-field thermal diffusivity (χ⊥) is presented. This model is used to derive χ⊥ at the O-point from electron temperature data measured across 2/1 NTM islands in DIII-D. It was found that χ⊥ at the O-point is 1 to 2 orders of magnitude smaller than the background plasma transport, in qualitative agreement with gyrokinetic predictions. As the anomalously large values of χ⊥ are often attributed to turbulence driven transport, the reduction of the O-point χ⊥ is consistent with turbulence reduction found in recent experiments. Final...

Effect of externally imposed and self-generated flows on turbulence and magnetohydrodynamic activity in tokamak plasmas

The effects of externally imposed and self-generated poloidal flows on turbulence and magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) activity are examined in the context of the possible Electric Tokamak (ET) [Phys. Plasmas 6, 4722 (1999)] plasmas and (circularized) DIII-D-like [Fusion Technol. 8, 441 (1985)] discharges. Global gyrokinetic particle simulations and reduced MHD calculations respectively show that ion temperature gradient driven turbulence (ITGDT) and resistive internal kink MHD activity can be reduced and/or suppressed with experimentally achievable externally imposed flows for possible ET start-up plasmas. Global gyrokinetic particle simulations of ITGDT also serve to demonstrate that self-generated flows are necessary to yield experimentally relevant radial correlation lengths in the case of DIII-D-like discharges.

Predictions of the near edge transport shortfall in DIII-D L-mode plasmas using the trapped gyro-Landau-fluid model

Previous studies of DIII-D L-mode plasmas have shown that a transport shortfall exists in that our current models of turbulent transport can significantly underestimate the energy transport in the near edge region. In this paper, the Trapped Gyro-Landau-Fluid (TGLF) drift wave transport model is used to simulate the near edge transport in a DIII-D L-mode experiment designed to explore the impact of varying the safety factor on the shortfall. We find that the shortfall systematically increases with increasing safety factor and is more pronounced for the electrons than for the ions. Within the shortfall dataset, a single high current case has been found where no transport shortfall is predicted. Reduced neutral beam injection power has been identified as the key parameter separating this discharge from other discharges exhibiting a shortfall. Further analysis shows that the energy transport in the L-mode near edge region is not stiff according to TGLF. Unlike the H-mode core region, the predicted temperatur...

Performance and data analysis aspects of the new DIII-D monostatic profile reflectometer system

A new frequency-modulated profile reflectometer system, featuring a monostatic antenna geometry (using one microwave antenna for both launch and receive), has been installed on the DIII-D tokamak, providing a first experimental test of this measurement approach for profile reflectometry. Significant features of the new system are briefly described in this paper, including the new monostatic arrangement, use of overmoded, broadband transmission waveguide, and dual-polarization combination/demultiplexing. Updated data processing and analysis, and in-service performance aspects of the new monostatic profile reflectometer system are also presented. By using a raytracing code (GENRAY) to determine the approximate trajectory of the probe beam, the electron density (ne) profile can be successfully reconstructed with L-mode plasmas vertically shifted by more than 10 cm off the vessel midplane. Specifically, it is demonstrated that the new system has a capability to measure ne profiles with plasma vertical offsets of up to ±17 cm. Examples are also presented of accurate, high time and spatial resolution density profile measurements made over a wide range of DIII-D conditions, e.g., the measured temporal evolution of the density profile across a L-H transition.