Fast Imaging of Turbulent Plasmas in the TORPEX Device

This thesis addresses the issue of turbulence generated modes and intermittent structures using a fast visible imaging system on TORPEX. The plasma radiation mechanisms and experimental setup of the imaging system are discussed together with an optimized tomographic reconstruction method. In TORPEX typical plasmas, radiative ionization is the dominant radiation mechanism. The photon flux emitted by hydrogen plasmas is a linear function of √Te and ne for Te ≥ 4eV. A Photron Ultima APX-RS fast visible camera was used to acquire the light emission of TORPEX plasmas. The camera equipped with the image intensifier is able to image TORPEX plasmas up to 200 kframes/s of framing rate and down to 1µs of exposure time, which results in clear images of plasma structures. The time-resolved poloidal emissivity of TORPEX plasma emission is tomographically reconstructed from tangentially viewed images using a pixel method and singular value decomposition approach. The spatial resolution in the reconstructed emissivity profiles, is 2cm. The plasma emissivity and ion saturation current profiles are compared using the conditional average sampling (CAS) technique and statistical analysis of fluctuations. The CAS is performed to visualize the mode structures and to estimate their sizes. The resulting fast imaging of the plasma, non-perturbative and high spatio-temporal resolution diagnostics, can visualize small scale turbulent plasma structures, well beyond the typical spatial resolution of probe arrays. A two-dimensional gas puff (2D-GPI) imaging system, including a 2D movable gas puff nozzle and a fast framing camera, has been developed in the TORPEX device. Direct local measurements from a large number of probes, distributed across the plasma column, are used to establish a correlation between the plasma parameters and the locally measured visible light emission. GPI and ion saturation current signals are well correlated, with correlation coefficients higher than 0.75. Fourier analysis of the GPI and internal probes show that the GPI can detect the dominant interchange mode. Quasi-coherent interchange modes and intermittent, turbulence generated blobs can be detected and studied using fast visible imaging in TORPEX. For an increasing vertical magnetic field, the principal interchange mode is damped and a sharp transition occurs between low-k and high-k harmonics. The scaling of the radial width of different interchange harmonics with respect to the vertical wave-number (kz) shows good agreement between the experimental and theoretical radial-width-kz scaling in TORPEX plasmas. The gradient-removal mechanism, describing the level of turbulent fluctuations, was tested using experimental data from the visible camera. The saturation level of the interchange instabilities predicted by the gradient-removal mechanism is in reasonable agreement with the experimental measurements. Tomographically inverted data from the fast camera were used to study the propagation of intermittent blobs. The experimental speed-versus-size scaling of blobs in the camera data is in good agreement with theoretical predictions. This thesis confirms the possibility of using fast imaging to estimate saturation level of fluctuations associated with ideal interchange instability and to reconstruct the blob speed-size scaling law in tokamak plasmas non-perturbatively. This can be used to non-perturbatively estimate the transport levels in the SOL of fusion devices.

Plasma rotation and momentum transport studies in the TCV tokamak based on charge exchange spectroscopy measurements

Alessandro Bortolon

Thermonuclear controlled fusion research is a highly active branch of plasma physics. The main goal is the production of energy from the fusion reaction of hydrogen isotope nuclei, the same reaction that powers stars. The most promising present approach are Tokamaks, toroidal devices where high temperature plasmas are confined by means of magnetic fields. This thesis is devoted to a detailed and systematic study of plasma rotation nthe Tokamak à Configuration Variable (TCV), at the Centre de Recherches en Physique des Plasmas (CRPP) in Lausanne Switzerland. In a tokamak, confinement is limited by particle and energy transport from the hot core to the cold edge and by macroscopic perturbations of magnetic equilibrium. Recently, plasma rotation has been demonstrated to beneficially affect both confinement and stability, explaining the great recent interest in plasma rotation studies Relatively little is understood about plasma rotation physics and, in particular, the so called "intrinsic" rotation that will constitute the main component of plasma rotation in next generation machines. That is why a great theoretical and experimental effort is being deployed in studying intrinsic rotation and this work is part of this context. In TCV, plasma rotation is measured by the Charge eXchange Recombination Spectroscopy diagnostic (CXRS). The spectroscopic signal comes from the perpendicular observation of a low power Diagnostic Neutral Beam Injector (DNBI), which applies a negligible torque to the plasma. Hence, the DNBI/CXRS pair is an effective tool for the experimental study of intrinsic tokamak plasma rotation. During this work, the pre existing toroidal observation view was complemented with two new systems, permitting the measurement of toroidal rotation, on inboard plasma radius, and poloidal rotation in the plasma periphery. The implementation of an automated wavelength calibration procedure, based on reference Neon spectra, permitted the first viable (toroidal and poloidal) rotation measurements of TCV, with uncertainties down to 1km/s. Using upgraded light collection optics and fiber optic transmission lines, simultaneous measurement of core and edge plasma was achieved, with a doubling of of the radial resolution of the toroidal rotation measurements. The measurable range of plasma parameters was also extended to higher densities by the installation of back illuminated CCD detectors. In the present configuration (CXRS09), the diagnostic is capable of routinely measuring toroidal and poloidal plasma rotations with a radial resolution of ≲ 1 cm and a sample frequency of 10 ÷ 20 Hz, for plasma densities of 0.8 ≲ ne,av ≲ 8 × 1019 m-3. The basic scenario of Ohmically heated discharges in limiter L-mode configuration was initially addressed. A large core toroidal rotation up to uφ ≈ 50 km/s in the counter current direction is measured, reversing nearly exactly upon reversal of plasma current Ip. The toroidal rotation profile may be schematically divided into a core, a peripheral and an intermediate region. For qe ≈ 3 (magnetic safety factor at the plasma edge) the core region velocity is relatively flat or slightly "bulged" in the co current direction inside the sawtooth inversion radius. In the peripheral region, the toroidal rotation is small with a monotonic intermediate region. The central rotation appears to be limited to approximately its value at the sawtooth inversion radius. Poloidal rotation uθ ≲ 3 km/s, measured in Ohmic discharges, is only weakly dependent on plasma parameters but reverses with reversed magnetic field, with values and direction coherent with neoclassical predictions. Combining uφ and uθ measurements, the profile of the radial electric field Er was estimated through the radial force balance equation. Er down to 8 kVm (inward directed) is found in the plasma bulk, and close to zero at the plasma edge. A spontaneous reversal of the toroidal rotation profile is observed when the average density exceeds ne,av ≈ 4 × 1019 m-3 at low qe ≈ 3, with the plasma now rotating in the co current direction. The transition between the co and counter rotation regimes is studied dynamically using ne and Ip ramps and with the application of Electro Cyclotron Heating (ECH). The rotation reversal is weakly sensitive to impurity concentration and positive plasma triangularity appears to be a key ingredient. Whilst a physical explanation has not been identified yet, dynamic uφ reversal observations indicate that it results from a changed balance of radial non-diffusive fluxes of toroidal momentum. The study was extended to the divertor magnetic configuration in which the plasma column rotates in the co current direction at low ne, and uφ reverses at high ne opposite from the limited configuration. The rotation profile may again be divided into three regions, although the rotation at the plasma periphery does not always remain close to zero but evolves with the plasma parameters. In particular, independently on the core rotation regime, peripheral uφ decreases with ne and Ip and is strongly sensitive to the ion B→ × ∇B direction, suggesting a link with parallel fluxes in the Scrape-Off Layer (SOL). Combined measurements of of CXRS and Mach probe indicate that in the plasma edge toroidal rotation matches the toroidal component of SOL flows. From the analysis of toroidal rotation in stationary and transient phases, a characterization of the momentum transport is presented. The resulting radial momentum diffusivity, of the order of Χφ ∼ 0.1 – 0.3 m2/s, exceeds by 2 orders of magnitude the neoclassical estimation. A remarkable result is the existence of a "residual stress" component, which sustains a substantial stationary rotation gradient for null background rotation. Conversely, the analysis suggests a minor role for the convective (pinch) component, that is preliminarily confirmed by gyro-kinetic simulations including turbulent Coriolis convective pinch. Neoclassical predictions are in quantitative and qualitative disagreement with the experimental observations. The effect of the sawtooth instability on the core rotation was addressed in a specific experimental scenario where the inter crash evolution of the core uφ could be measured. The measurement required the development of a fast CXRS acquisition scheme based on a trigger constructed in real time from a Soft X-ray measurement. At the sawtooth crash the plasma core undergoes a strong acceleration in the co current direction (∆uφ ≈ 9 km/s in the experimental scenario), possibly related to a strong transient toroidal electric field. The systematic and varied observations reported in this work extend the experimental knowledge of bulk plasma rotation in low confinement regimes. In particular, the rotation reversal phenomena constitute an important test for momentum transport models of tokamak plasmas.

EPFL2009

Electron Cyclotron Heating and Suprathermal Electron Dynamics in the TCV Tokamak

Silvano Gnesin

This thesis is concerned with the physics of suprathermal electrons in thermonuclear, magnetically confined plasmas. Under a variety of conditions, in laboratory as well as space plasmas, the electron velocity distribution function is not in thermodynamic equilibrium owing to internal or external drives. Accordingly, the distribution function departs from the equilibrium Maxwellian, and in particular generally develops a high-energy tail. In tokamak plasmas, this occurs especially as a result of injection of high-power electromagnetic waves, used for heating and current drive, as well as a result of internal magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) instabilities. The physics of these phenomena is intimately tied to the properties and dynamics of this suprathermal electron population. This motivates the development of instrumental apparatus to measure its properties as well as of numerical codes to simulate their dynamics. Both aspects are reflected in this thesis work, which features advanced instrumental development and experimental measurements as well as numerical modeling. The instrumental development consisted of the complete design of a spectroscopic and tomographic system of four multi-detector hard X-ray (HXR) cameras for the TCV tokamak. The goal is to measure bremsstrahlung emission from suprathermal electrons with energies in the 10-300 keV range, with the ultimate aim of providing the first full tomographic reconstruction at these energies in a noncircular plasma. In particular, suprathermal electrons are generated in TCV by a high-power electron cyclotron heating (ECH) system and are also observed in the presence of MHD events, such as sawtooth oscillations and disruptive instabilities. This diagnostic employs state-of-the-art solid-state detectors and is optimized for the tight space requirements of the TCV ports. It features a novel collimator concept that combines compactness and flexibility as well as full digital acquisition of the photon pulses, greatly enhancing its potential for full spectral analysis in high-fluency scenarios. Additional flexibility is afforded by the possibility to rotate the orientation of two of the cameras, permitting the crucial comparison of radiation emitted perpendicular and parallel to the primary magnetic field. The design of the HXR system was optimized through an extensive iterative simulation process with the aid of tomographic reconstruction codes as well as quasilinear Fokker-Planck modeling of ECH-driven TCV plasmas. In parallel, the selection of the detectors for this system was performed through comprehensive laboratory testing of several candidate detectors available on the market. While the design was completed in the course of the thesis work, commissioning of the system has only commenced recently with one of the four cameras installed on TCV. The first preliminary results, discussed in the last part of this thesis, include basic parameter scans of ECH wave-plasma interaction and the investigation of the dynamic response of suprathermal electrons to modulated ECH. In addition, the cameras possess the novel ability to discriminate against very high-energy γ-ray radiation that cannot be collimated and must thus be excluded from spatial distribution analysis. A basic study of the conditions for γ-ray suppression was conducted in preparation for future experiments. The Fokker-Planck modeling tool used in this diagnostic development was acquired through a collaboration with CEA-Cadarache, initially with the primary motivation of studying the simultaneous plasma heating by 2nd and 3rd harmonic electron cyclotron waves that is uniquely possible on TCV. This motivated a dedicated study, both theoretical and experimental, of one particular instance of this combined heating, which became a second primary subject of this thesis work. The particular scenario studied here is one in which a single ECH frequency is resonant at both harmonics in the same plasma. The primary objective of this study was to determine whether a synergy effect existed, permitting an enhancement of the intrinsically weak 3rd harmonic absorption by the suprathermal electrons generated at the 2nd harmonic resonance. An associated question was whether this effect, if it existed, was experimentally measurable or was in fact observed in TCV. The simulations performed in the course of this study indeed predict the existence of such a synergy, although the answer to the second question was ultimately negative, at least within the current technical limitations. This study has proven nevertheless highly valuable in providing new insight into the complex velocity-space dynamics that govern ECH wave-particle interaction and suprathermal electron dynamics.

EPFL2011

Exploration of candidate fusion reactor regimes by real time control of tokamak plasma shape

Himank Anand

The potential of nuclear fusion to provide a practically inexhaustible source of energy has motivated scientists to work towards developing nuclear fusion tokamak power plants. Stable operation of a tokamak at high performance requires simultaneous treatment of several plasma control problems. Moreover, the complex physics which governs the tokamak plasma evolution must be studied and understood to make correct choices in controller design. This mutual inter-dependence has informed this thesis, using control solutions as an experimental tool for physics studies, and using physics knowledge for developing new advanced control solutions. The TCV tokamak at SPC-EPFL is ideally placed to explore issues at the interface between plasma physics and plasma control, by combining a state-of-the-art digital real time control system with a flexible and diverse set of actuators including a full set of independently powered shaping coils. The recent deployment of the real time version of the Grad-Shafranov equilibrium reconstruction code LIUQE, with a sub-ms cycle time in the digital control system, has facilitated the design of a new generalised plasma position and shape controller, based on the information on poloidal flux and magnetic field provided by the real-time Grad-Shafranov solver. The first issue addressed in the thesis is the development and experimental testing of a new real time control strategy to construct a generalised control algorithm for not only controlling the position of the plasma but also to aid in the precise control of higher order shape moments, X-points and strike points, particularly in advanced plasma configurations such as negative-triangularity plasmas, snowflake and super-X divertors, and doublets. A controller formulation ensuring flexibility through an ordering of controlled variables from the most easily to the least easily controlled, while respecting the hardware limits on the poloidal field coil currents, is developed. The successful experimental implementation of the control algorithm has been demonstrated for both fixed and time varying plasma position and shape for limiter and divertor plasma discharges. In addition, the controller has provided satisfactory performance with respect to plasma scenarios involving complex changes in the plasma shape and position. The second issue addressed in the thesis is the application of the generalised plasma position and shape controller to a snowflake plasma configuration. A comparison between the optimised generalised plasma position and shape controller with the performance of the TCV hybrid controller for a given reference snowflake plasma discharge showed a marked improvement in various geometrical properties of the snowflake plasma configuration in the vicinity of the null point. However, strong control of the poloidal magnetic field at the two X-points resulted in a tradeoff on the upper part of the plasma boundary, where the overall precision was comparable to that of the legacy controller. In the experimental time available, the snowflake shots developed exhibited a boundary that was too close to the inner wall of the vessel, modifying the edge plasma behaviour (studied with infrared cameras and Langmuir probes) and making it difficult to study the physics properties of the exact snowflake. However, further optimisation should well be possible.

EPFL2017