Ye. O. Kazakov

On resonant ICRF absorption in three-ion component plasmas: a new promising tool for fast ion generation

We report on a very efficient ion-cyclotron-resonance-frequency (ICRF) absorption scheme (Z)–Y–X, which hinges on the presence of three ion species residing in the plasma. A mode conversion (cutoff-resonance) layer is well known to appear in two-ion species plasmas. If the location of the L-cutoff in Y–X plasmas, which can be controlled by varying the Y : X density ratio, almost coincides with the fundamental cyclotron resonance of the third ion species Z (resonant absorber), the latter—albeit present only in trace quantities—is shown to absorb almost all the incoming RF power. A quantitative criterion for the resonant Y : X plasma composition is derived and a few numerical examples are given. Since the absorbed power per resonant particle is much larger than for any other ICRF scheme, the here discussed scenarios are particularly promising for fast particle generation. Their possible application as a source of high-energy ions for the stellarator W7-X and to mimic alpha particles during the non-activated phase of ITER tokamak is briefly discussed.

Optimization of ICRH for core impurity control in JET-ILW

Ion cyclotron resonance frequency (ICRF) heating has been an essential component in the development of high power H-mode scenarios in the Jet European Torus ITER-like wall (JET-ILW). The ICRF performance was improved by enhancing the antenna-plasma coupling with dedicated main chamber gas injection, including the preliminary minimization of RF-induced plasma-wall interactions, while the RF heating scenarios where optimized for core impurity screening in terms of the ion cyclotron resonance position and the minority hydrogen concentration. The impact of ICRF heating on core impurity content in a variety of 2.5 MA JET-ILW H-mode plasmas will be presented, and the steps that were taken for optimizing ICRF heating in these experiments will be reviewed.

Minority and mode conversion heating in (3He)–H JET plasmas

Radio frequency (RF) heating experiments have recently been conducted in JET (He-3)-H plasmas. This type of plasmas will be used in ITERs non-activated operation phase. Whereas a companion paper in this same PPCF issue will discuss the RF heating scenarios at half the nominal magnetic field, this paper documents the heating performance in (He-3)-H plasmas at full field, with fundamental cyclotron heating of He-3 as the only possible ion heating scheme in view of the foreseen ITER antenna frequency bandwidth. Dominant electron heating with global heating efficiencies between 30% and 70% depending on the He-3 concentration were observed and mode conversion (MC) heating proved to be as efficient as He-3 minority heating. The unwanted presence of both He-4 and D in the discharges gave rise to 2 MC layers rather than a single one. This together with the fact that the location of the high-field side fast wave (FW) cutoff is a sensitive function of the parallel wave number and that one of the locations of the wave confluences critically depends on the He-3 concentration made the interpretation of the results, although more complex, very interesting: three regimes could be distinguished as a function of X[He-3]: (i) a regime at low concentration (X[He-3] < 1.8%) at which ion cyclotron resonance frequency (ICRF) heating is efficient, (ii) a regime at intermediate concentrations (1.8 < X[He-3] < 5%) in which the RF performance is degrading and ultimately becoming very poor, and finally (iii) a good heating regime at He-3 concentrations beyond 6%. In this latter regime, the heating efficiency did not critically depend on the actual concentration while at lower concentrations (X[He-3] < 4%) a bigger excursion in heating efficiency is observed and the estimates differ somewhat from shot to shot, also depending on whether local or global signals are chosen for the analysis. The different dynamics at the various concentrations can be traced back to the presence of 2 MC layers and their associated FW cutoffs residing inside the plasma at low He-3 concentration. One of these layers is approaching and crossing the low-field side plasma edge when 1.8 < X[He-3] < 5%. Adopting a minimization procedure to correlate the MC positions with the plasma composition reveals that the different behaviors observed are due to contamination of the plasma. Wave modeling not only supports this interpretation but also shows that moderate concentrations of D-like species significantly alter the overall wave behavior in He-3-H plasmas. Whereas numerical modeling yields quantitative information on the heating efficiency, analytical work gives a good description of the dominant underlying wave interaction physics.

Effect of impurities on the transition between minority ion and mode conversion ICRH heating in (3He)–H tokamak plasmas

Hydrogen majority plasmas will be used in the initial non-activated phase of ITER operation. Optimizing ion cyclotron resonance heating (ICRH) in such scenarios will help in achieving H-mode in these plasmas. Past JET experiments with the carbon wall revealed a significant impact of intrinsic impurities on the ICRH performance in (3He)–H plasmas relevant for the full-field initial ITER phase. High plasma contamination with carbon impurities resulted in the appearance of a supplementary mode conversion layer and significant reduction in the transition concentration of 3He minority ions, defined as the concentration at which the change from minority heating to the mode conversion regime occurs. In view of the installation of the new ITER-like wall at JET, it is important to evaluate the effect of Be and W impurities on ICRH scenarios in (3He)–H plasmas. In this paper, an approximate analytical expression for the transition concentration of 3He minority ions is derived as a function of plasma and ICRH parameters, and accounting for typical impurity species at JET. The accompanying 1D wave modelling supports the analytical results and suggests a potential experimental method to reduce the 3He level needed to achieve a specific heating regime by puffing a small amount of 4He ions additionally to (3He)–H plasma.

Potential of ion cyclotron resonance frequency current drive via fast waves in DEMO

For the continuous operation of future tokamak-reactors like DEMO, non-inductively driven toroidal plasma current is needed. Bootstrap current, due to the pressure gradient, and current driven by auxiliary heating systems are currently considered as the two main options. This paper addresses the current drive (CD) potential of the ion cyclotron resonance frequency (ICRF) heating system in DEMO-like plasmas. Fast wave CD scenarios are evaluated for both the standard midplane launch and an alternative case of exciting the waves from the top of the machine. Optimal ICRF frequencies and parallel wave numbers are identified to maximize the CD efficiency. Limitations of the high frequency ICRF CD operation are discussed. A simplified analytical method to estimate the fast wave CD efficiency is presented, complemented with the discussion of its dependencies on plasma parameters. The calculated CD efficiency for the ICRF system is shown to be similar to those for the negative neutral beam injection and electron cyclotron resonance heating.

A new ion cyclotron range of frequency scenario for bulk ion heating in deuterium-tritium plasmas: How to utilize intrinsic impurities in our favour

A fusion reactor requires plasma pre-heating before the rate of deuterium-tritium fusion reactions becomes significant. In ITER, radio frequency (RF) heating of 3He ions, additionally puffed into the plasma, is one of the main options considered for increasing bulk ion temperature during the ramp-up phase of the pulse. In this paper, we propose an alternative scenario for bulk ion heating with RF waves, which requires no extra 3He puff and profits from the presence of intrinsic Beryllium impurities in the plasma. The discussed method to heat Be impurities in D-T plasmas is shown to provide an even larger fraction of fuel ion heating.

N=2 ICRH of H majority plasmas in JET-ILW

Heating single ion species plasmas with ICRF is a challenging task: Fundamental ion cyclotron heating (w = wci) suffers from the adverse polarization of the RF electric fields near the majority cyclotron resonance while second harmonic heating (w = 2wci) typically requires pre-heating of the plasma ions to become efficient. Recently, w = 2wci ICRF heating was tested in JET-ILW hydrogen plasmas in the absence of neutral beam injection (L-mode). Despite the lack of pre-heating, up to 6MW of ICRF power were coupled to the plasma leading to a transition to H-mode for PICRH>5MW in most discharges. Heating efficiencies between 0.65-0.85 were achieved as a combination of the low magnetic field adopted (enhanced finite Larmor radius effects) and the deliberate slow rise of the ICRF power, allowing time for a fast ion population to gradually build-up leading to a systematic increase of the wave absorptivity. Although fast ion tails are a common feature of harmonic ICRF heating, the N=2 majority heating features mo...

The dedicated ICRH system for the stellarator Wendelstein 7-X

The current status of the mechanical and electromagnetic design for the ICRF antenna system for W7-X is presented. Two antenna plugins are discussed: one consisting of a pair of straps with pre-matching to cover the first frequency band 25-38 MHz and a second one consisting of two short strap triplets to cover a frequency band around 76 MHz. This paper focusses on the two strap antenna for the lower frequency band. Power coupling of the antenna to a reference plasma profile is studied with the help of the codes TOPICA and Microwave Studio, that deliver the scattering matrix needed for the optimization of the geometric parameters of the straps and antenna box. Radiation power spectra for different phasings of the two straps are obtained using the code ANTITER II and different heating scenarii are discussed. The potential for heating, fast particle generation and current drive is discussed. The problem of RF coupling through the plasma edge and of edge power deposition is summarized. The system contains a p...

ICRH for core impurity mitigation in JET-ILW

Ion cyclotron resonance frequency (ICRF) heating has been an essential component in the development of high power H-mode scenarios in JET-ILW. The steps that were taken for the successful use of ICRF heating in terms of enhancing the power capabilities and optimizing the heating performance in view of core impurity mitigation in these experiments will be reviewed.

Modelling of the ion cyclotron resonance heating scenarios for W7-X stellarator

The construction of the world largest superconducting stellarator Wendelstein 7-X (W7-X) has reached the final stage. One of the main scientific objectives of the W7-X project is to prove experimentally the predicted good confinement of high-energy ions. Ion cyclotron resonance heating (ICRH) system is considered to be installed in W7-X to serve as a localized source of high energy ions. ICRH heating scenarios relevant for hydrogen and deuterium phases of W7-X operation are summarized. The heating efficiency in (3He)-H plasmas is qualitatively analyzed using a modified version of the 1D TOMCAT code able to account for stellarator geometry. The minority ion absorption is shown to be maximized at the helium-3 concentration ∼2% for the typical plasma and ICRH parameters to be available during the initial phase of W7-X.