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A plasma generator for a long pulse H+/D+ ion source has been developed. The plasma generator was designed to produce 65 A H+/D+ beams at an energy of 120 keV from an ion extraction area of 12 cm in width and 45 cm in length. Configuration of the plasma generator is a multi-cusp bucket type with SmCo permanent magnets. Dimension of a plasma chamber is 25 cm in width, 59 cm in length, and 32.5 cm in depth. The plasma generator was designed and fabricated at Japan Atomic Energy Agency. Source plasma generation and beam extraction tests for hydrogen coupling with an accelerator of the KSTAR ion source have been performed at the KSTAR neutral beam test stand under the agreement of Japan-Korea collaborative experiment. Spatial uniformity of the source plasma at the extraction region was measured using Langmuir probes and ±7% of the deviation from an averaged ion saturation current density was obtained. A long pulse test of the plasma generation up to 200 s with an arc discharge power of 70 kW has been successfully demonstrated. The arc discharge power satisfies the requirement of the beam production for the KSTAR NBI. A 70 keV, 41 A, 5 s hydrogen ion beam has been extracted with a high arc efficiency of 0.9 -1.1 A/kW at a beam extraction experiment. A deuteron yield of 77% was measured even at a low beam current density of 73 mA/cm2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High power, long pulse millimeter (mm) wave experiments of the RF test stand (RFTS) of Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) were performed. The system consists of a 1 MW/170 GHz gyrotron, a long and short distance transmission line (TL), and an equatorial launcher (EL) mock-up. The RFTS has an ITER-relevant configuration, i.e., consisted by a 1 MW-170 GHz gyrotron, a mm wave TL, and an EL mock-up. The TL is composed of a matching optics unit, evacuated circular corrugated waveguides, 6-miter bends, an in-line waveguide switch, and an isolation valve. The EL-mock-up is fabricated according to the current design of the ITER launcher. The Gaussian-like beam radiation with the steering capability of 20°-40° from the EL mock-up was also successfully proved. The high power, long pulse power transmission test was conducted with the metallic load replaced by the EL mock-up, and the transmission of 1 MW/800 s and 0.5 MW/1000 s was successfully demonstrated with no arcing and no damages. The transmission efficiency of the TL was 96%. The results prove the feasibility of the ITER electron cyclotron heating and current drive system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study was motivated by an interesting physical effect observed in experiments with a 1 MW, 170 GHz, continuous-wave gyrotron developed at the Japan Atomic Energy Agency for plasma heating and current drive in ITER [see, e.g., Fusion Eng. Des. 55, issues 2–3 (2001)]. In these experiments, the gyrotron switching from a parasitic mode to the operating one was observed with the increase in external magnetic field in the region of hard self-excitation of the operating mode where it cannot be excited from the noise level in the absence of other modes. Below, the theory describing this effect is developed. The switching mechanism caused by merging and disappearance of two (one stable and another unstable) equilibrium states with nonzero amplitudes of both modes is proposed. It is found that the present theory can correctly interpret experimental results qualitatively, but the lack of experimental data does not let the authors carry out some simulations more adequate to experimental conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We have developed a new ion source system in the isotope separator on-line at Japan Atomic Energy Agency, for separation of short-lived isotopes produced by proton-induced fission of 238U. The ion source system is a forced electron beam induced arc discharge version E type ion source with a target container. We successfully operated this system at 2000 °C as a result of reductions in volume of the ion source and the target container, introduction of heating method by electron bombardment, and improvement to the heat shield. This new ion source system was tested using 238U of 640 mg/cm2 with a proton primary beam of 30 MeV, 350 nA. Release times were measured for Kr, In, and Xe. The values of release times are 2.6 s for Kr, 1.8 s for In, and 4.6 s for Xe. In this work, the ion source system enabled us to mass-separate short-lived isotopes such as 93Kr(T1/2=1.286 s), 129In(T1/2=0.61 s), and 141Xe(T1/2=1.73 s) with intensity of 103 ions/s. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]