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Improvements to the stellarator concept can be realized through advancements in theoretical and computational plasma physics. Herein, recent advances are reported in the topical areas of: (1) improved energetic ion confinement, (2) the impact of three-dimensional (3D) shaping on turbulent transport, (3) reducing coil complexity, (4) novel optimization and design methods, and (5) computational magnetohydrodynamic tools. These advances enable the development of new stellarator configurations with improved confinement properties.

Key physics issues in the design of a high- quasi-axisymmetric stellarator configuration are discussed. The goal of the design study is a compact stellarator configuration with aspect ratio comparable to that of tokamaks and good transport and stability properties. Quasi- axisymmetry has been used to provide good drift trajectories. Ballooning stabilization has been accomplished by strong axisymmetric shaping, yielding a stellarator configuration whose core is in the second stability regime for ballooning modes. A combination of externally generated shear and non-axisymmetric corrugation of the plasma boundary provides stability to external kink modes even in the absence of a conducting wall. The resulting configuration is also found to be robustly stable to vertical modes, increasing the freedom to perform axisymmetric shaping. Stability to neoclassical tearing modes is conferred by a monotonically increasing profile. A gyrokinetic f code has been used to confirm the adequacy of the neoclassical confinement. Neutral beam losses have been evaluated with Monte Carlo codes.

The next step in the Wendelstein stellarator line is the large superconducting device Wendelstein 7-X, currently under construction in Greifswald, Germany. Steady-state operation is an intrinsic feature of stellarators, and one key element of the Wendelstein 7-X mission is to demonstrate steady-state operation under plasma conditions relevant for a fusion power plant. Steady-state operation of a fusion device, on the one hand, requires the implementation of special technologies, giving rise to technical challenges during the design, fabrication and assembly of such a device. On the other hand, also the physics development of steady-state operation at high plasma performance poses a challenge and careful preparation. The electron cyclotron resonance heating system, diagnostics, experiment control and data acquisition are prepared for plasma operation lasting 30 min. This requires many new technological approaches for plasma heating and diagnostics as well as new concepts for experiment control and data acquisition.

In linear accelerators, wake field effects and dispersion from orbit distortions can lead to considerable emittance dilution. Since the transverse wake fields and the dispersion depend on the orbit in the accelerating structures and quadrupoles, there are constraints on the resolution of the beam position monitors and on alignment tolerances. The tracking code L, which is affiliated to the family of MAFIA codes, has been developed to simulate both single and multi-bunch dynamics in linear accelerators. By use of this code, the impact of misalignments on the combined single and multi-bunch behaviour of the beam is investigated for the S-band accelerator as envisioned in the SBLC study. Further, the performance of a full machine tuning scheme including beam loading compensation, orbit correction, structure adjustment and emittance correction is examined. From the results, limits for the alignment tolerances are deduced.

Strategies for the improvement of quasiaxisymmetric stellarator configurations are explored. Calculations of equilibrium flux surfaces for candidate configurations are also presented. One optimization strategy is found to generate configurations with improved neoclassical confinement, simpler coils with lower current density, and improved flux surface quality relative to previous designs. The flux surface calculations find significant differences in the extent of islands and stochastic regions between candidate configurations. (These calculations do not incorporate the predicted beneficial effects of perturbed bootstrap currents.) A method is demonstrated for removing low order islands from candidate configurations by relatively small modifications of the configuration. One configuration is identified as having particularly desirable properties for a proposed experiment. (C) 2001 American Institute of Physics.

High-beta, low-aspect-ratio ("compact") stellarators are promising solutions to the problem of developing a magnetic plasma configuration for magnetic fusion power plants that can be sustained in steady state without disrupting. These concepts combine features of stellarators and advanced tokamaks and have aspect ratios similar to those of tokamaks (2-4). They are based on computed plasma configurations that are shaped in three dimensions to provide desired stability and transport properties. Experiments are planned as part of a program to develop this concept. A beta = 4% quasi-axisymmetric plasma configuration has been evaluated for the National Compact Stellarator Experiment (NCSX). It has a substantial bootstrap current and is shaped to stabilize ballooning, external kink, vertical, and neoclassical tearing modes without feedback or close-fitting conductors. Quasi-omnigeneous plasma configurations stable to ballooning modes at beta = 4% have been evaluated for the Quasi-Omnigeneous Stellarator (QOS) experiment. These equilibria have relatively low bootstrap currents and are insensitive to changes in beta. Coil configurations have been calculated that reconstruct these plasma configurations, preserving their important physics properties. Theory- and experiment-based confinement analyses are used to evaluate the technical capabilities needed to reach target plasma conditions. The physics basis for these complementary experiments is described. (C) 2000 American Institute of Physics. [S1070-664X(00)94905-X].