U. Fantz

Overview of the RF source development programme at IPP Garching

The development of a large-area RF source for negative hydrogen ions, an official EFDA task agreement, is aiming at demonstrating ITER-relevant ion source parameters. This implies a current density of 200?A?m?2 accelerated D? ions at a source filling pressure of ?0.3?Pa and an electron-to-ion ratio of ?1 from an extraction area similar to the positive-ion based sources at JET and ASDEX Upgrade and for pulse lengths of up to 1?h. The work is progressing along three lines in parallel: (i) optimization of current densities at low pressure and electron/ion ratio, utilizing small extraction areas (<0.01?m2) and short pulses (<6?s), in this parameter range the ITER requirements are met or even exceeded; (ii) investigation on extended extraction areas (<0.03?m2) and pulse lengths of up to 3600?s and (iii) investigation of a size-scaling on a half-size ITER plasma source. Three different test beds are being used to carry out these investigations in parallel. An extensive diagnostic and modelling programme accompanies the activities. The paper discusses the recent achievements and the status in these three areas of development.

Basics of plasma spectroscopy

These lecture notes are intended to give an introductory course on plasma spectroscopy. Focusing on emission spectroscopy, the underlying principles of atomic and molecular spectroscopy in low temperature plasmas are explained. This includes choice of the proper equipment and the calibration procedure. Based on population models, the evaluation of spectra and their information content is described. Several common diagnostic methods are presented, ready for direct application by the reader, to obtain a multitude of plasma parameters by plasma spectroscopy.

Spectroscopy—a powerful diagnostic tool in source development

The development of negative hydrogen ion sources for neutral beam systems is closely linked with an optimization of negative ion formation in hydrogen plasmas, which requires knowledge of the plasma parameters. Emission spectroscopy is introduced as a non-invasive and in situ diagnostic tool for line of sight averaged plasma parameters. Diagnostic lines and simplified analysis methods for a variety of plasma parameters, such as electron density and electron temperature, gas temperature, atomic and molecular hydrogen density, caesium densities (atoms and ions), and negative ion densities are identified and prepared for direct application. Emphasis is laid on results obtained in RF generated negative ion sources. Correlations of plasma parameters with extracted negative ion current densities are discussed. Stripping losses in the extraction system are quantified by using beam emission spectroscopy.

Physical performance analysis and progress of the development of the negative ion RF source for the ITER NBI system

For heating and current drive the neutral beam injection (NBI) system for ITER requires a 1 MeV deuterium beam for up to 1 h pulse length. In order to inject the required 17 MW the large area source (1.9 m × 0.9 m) has to deliver 40 A of negative ion current at the specified source pressure of 0.3 Pa. In 2007, the IPP RF driven negative hydrogen ion source was chosen by the ITER board as the new reference source for the ITER NBI system due to, in principle, its maintenance free operation and the progress in the RF source development. The performance analysis of the IPP RF sources is strongly supported by an extensive diagnostic program and modelling of the source and beam extraction. The control of the plasma chemistry and the processes in the plasma region near the extraction system are the most critical topics for source optimization both for long pulse operation as well as for the source homogeneity. The long pulse stability has been demonstrated at the test facility MANITU which is now operating routinely at stable pulses of up to 10 min with parameters near the ITER requirements. A quite uniform plasma illumination of a large area source (0.8 m × 0.8 m) has been demonstrated at the ion source test facility RADI. The new test facility ELISE presently planned at IPP is being designed for long pulse plasma operation and short pulse, but large-scale extraction from a half-size ITER source which is an important intermediate step towards ITER NBI.

A Langmuir probe system for high power RF-driven negative ion sources on high potential

A fully automated Langmuir probe system capable of operating simultaneously with beam extraction has been developed and commissioned for the negative hydrogen ion source testbeds at IPP Garching. It allows the measurement of temporal and spatial distributions of the plasma parameters within a single plasma pulse ( 1018 m−3) and hot (Te > 10 eV) plasma with bi-Maxwellian electron energy distribution at low pressures. The plasma found near the plasma grid is very different being of low density (≤1017 m−3) and very cold (Te < 2 eV). This plasma is also strongly influenced by the presence of caesium, the potential of the plasma grid, and if an ion beam is extracted from the source. Caesium strongly reduces the plasma potential of the source and enhances the negative ion density near the plasma grid. Extracting an ion beam is observed to reduce the electron density and increase the potential near the plasma grid. Applying a potential greater than the plasma potential to the plasma grid is found to significantly decrease the electron density near the plasma grid.

Spectroscopic diagnostics of the vibrational population in the ground state of and molecules

A diagnostic method has been evaluated for measuring the relative vibrational ground-state population of molecular hydrogen and deuterium. It is based on the analysis of the diagonal Fulcher bands and the Franck-Condon principle of excitation. The validity of the underlying assumptions was verified by experiments in microwave discharges and the method is recommended for application in divertor plasmas in controlled fusion experiments. By attributing a vibrational temperature to the ground-state electronic level and assuming population via the Franck-Condon principle, the upper Fulcher state vibrational distribution can be derived theoretically with as parameter. Comparison with experimentally derived upper-state population gives the corresponding of the ground state. The Franck-Condon factors for the and transitions have been calculated for both hydrogen and deuterium from molecular constants using the FCFRKR code. The method has been applied to low pressure /He and /He microwave plasmas, showing good agreement of experimentally and theoretically derived upper Fulcher state vibrational distributions. The vibrational temperatures range from 3200 K to 6800 K for and 2600 K to 4000 K for . depending on molecular density, pressure and electron temperature, but indicating nearly the same vibrational population for and for comparable plasma conditions.

PIC code for the plasma sheath in large caesiated RF sources for negative hydrogen ions

Powerful negative hydrogen ion sources are required for heating and current drive at ITER. The physics of the production and extraction of high negative ion currents is much more complex than that for positive ions. One of the most relevant parameters is the shape of the plasma sheath, which determines the velocity of surface produced negative ions and thus the probability of the ions to reach the extraction system. In order to investigate the influence of hydrogen atoms, positive and negative hydrogen ions and positive caesium ions on the plasma sheath, a 1d3v particle in cell code (PIC) code for the plasma close to the extraction system has been developed. For typical plasma parameters of such ion sources, surface conversion of impinging atoms is the main negative ion production channel, while conversion of positive ions plays a minor role. Due to the formation of a potential minimum close to the surface, the emission of negative ions into the plasma is space charge limited. As a consequence, the flux of negative ions can be increased only by increasing the density of positive hydrogen ions. At identical plasma parameters, an isotope effect is determined by the mass of the particles only, resulting in lower fluxes of negative deuterium ions compared with hydrogen. A small amount of positive Cs does not change the plasma sheath and the H− flux significantly.

Negative ion RF sources for ITER NBI: status of the development and recent achievements

For heating and current drive the neutral beam injection system for ITER requires a deuterium beam with an energy of 1 MeV for up to 1 h. In order to inject the required 17 MW the ion source has to deliver 40 A of negative ion current. For an accelerated current density of 200 A m−2 at the specified source pressure of 0.3 Pa the extraction area is 0.2 m2 resulting in a large area source of 1.5 × 0.6 m2. Two types of sources have been under discussion, the filamented arc source and the inductively driven RF source, the latter now having been chosen for the ITER reference design. The development of negative ion RF sources, which fulfil these specifications is being carried out at the Max–Planck-Institut fur Plasmaphysik at three test facilities in parallel. The required current densities at the ITER relevant pressure have been achieved and even exceeded in a test facility equipped with a small ion source (extraction area of 0.007 m2) at limited pulse length (<4 s). The extraction area can be extended up to 0.03 m2 and the pulse length up to 3600 s at a second test facility which is dedicated to long pulse operation experiments where pulses up to 800 s have already been achieved. The ion source at the third test facility has roughly the full width and half the height of the ITER source but is not equipped with an extraction system. The aim is to demonstrate the size scaling and plasma homogeneity of RF ion sources. First results from different diagnostic techniques (optical emission spectroscopy and Langmuir probe) are very promising.

The development of the radio frequency driven negative ion source for neutral beam injectors (invited).

Large and powerful negative hydrogen ion sources are required for the neutral beam injection (NBI) systems of future fusion devices. Simplicity and maintenance-free operation favors RF sources, which are developed intensively at the Max-Planck-Institut für Plasmaphysik (IPP) since many years. The negative hydrogen ions are generated by caesium-enhanced surface conversion of atoms and positive ions on the plasma grid surface. With a small scale prototype the required high ion current density and the low fraction of co-extracted electrons at low pressure as well as stable pulses up to 1 h could be demonstrated. The modular design allows extension to large source dimensions. This has led to the decision to choose RF sources for the NBI of the international fusion reactor, ITER. As an intermediate step towards the full size ITER source at IPP, the development will be continued with a half-size source on the new ELISE testbed. This will enable to gain experience for the first time with negative hydrogen ion beams from RF sources of these dimensions.

Hydrogen molecules in the divertor of ASDEX Upgrade

In order to reduce the power load onto the target plates detached divertor conditions are often preferred. These are characterized by volume recombination, i.e. three-body and radiative recombination. Due to low Te (few eV) hydrogen molecules can penetrate into the plasma and may play a role in divertor dynamics. In particular, it was suggested, that molecules may assist the volume recombination process. The role of molecules in the divertor is examined here by a combination of experimental results with plasma edge simulations (B2-EIRENE) and a collisional-radiative model for hydrogen molecules. Spectroscopic diagnostics of the Fulcher transition carried out at the divertor of ASDEX Upgrade yield estimates of molecular hydrogen fluxes and the vibrational population in the ground state in detached and attached hydrogen plasmas. Good agreement with B2-EIRENE is achieved only if vibrational levels are treated as distinct (metastable) particles in the model and if the collisional-radiative model is applied to the electronically excited levels. On this basis the contribution of molecules to plasma recombination was determined to be in the order of a few 10%. The dominant molecular process is the dissociation process via H2+. As a consequence initially detached divertor plasmas can even re-attach if vibrationally resolved molecules are properly included in plasma edge models. A set of B2-EIRENE calculations carried out for ASDEX Upgrade is discussed. In particular the threshold upstream density for detachment was found to be up to a factor 1.5 higher than that originally expected due to these molecular effects. The transferability of the results to deuterium will be discussed.