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We introduce an anisotropic regularization framework for the reconstruction of distribution functions from measurements, utilizing an approach that applies distinct regularization techniques such as non-negative constrained Tikhonov, total variation, and Besov-space priors, either penalizing the one-norm or the two-norm, in each dimension to reflect the anisotropic characteristics of the multidimensional data. This method, applied to fast-ion loss detector (FILD) measurements, demonstrates a significant improvement over conventional nonnegative-constrained zeroth-order Tikhonov regularization because the prior information of the form of the distribution allows better reconstructions. The validity of the approach is corroborated through FILD measurements of prompt fast-ion losses in an ASDEX Upgrade discharge, where the reconstructed distribution function agrees well with the prompt-loss distribution predicted by ASCOT simulations. Moreover, we develop a composite quality metric, Q , that combines the mean squared error and the Jaccard index for a comprehensive evaluation of reconstruction accuracy and spatial fidelity. Finally, anisotropic regularization is applied to FILD measurements at ASDEX Upgrade to study fast-ion acceleration by edge-localized modes. The refined analysis resolves fine structure in the pitch of the accelerated ions and clearly shows that some ions are accelerated to over twice the injection energy.

In the JET DTE2 deuterium-tritium campaign, neutron diagnostics were employed to measure 14 MeV neutrons originating from D(T,n)4He reactions. In discharge 99965, a diamond matrix detector (KM14) and a magnetic proton recoil (MPRu) detector with a vertical and an oblique line-of-sight were used, respectively. At the timepoints of interest, a significant decrease in the expected diagnostic signals can be observed as electromagnetic wave heating in the ion cyclotron range of frequencies (ICRF) is switched off. Utilizing only TRANSP simulation data, the fast-ion distribution is found to have been likely composed mostly of trapped orbits. In contrast, analysis performed using orbit weight functions revealed that the majority of neutrons in the KM14 MeV and MPRu

In the JET DTE2 deuterium-tritium campaign, neutron diagnostics were employed to measure 14 MeV neutrons originating from D(T,n)4He reactions. In discharge 99965, a diamond matrix detector (KM14) and a magnetic proton recoil (MPRu) detector with a vertical and an oblique line-of-sight were used, respectively. At the timepoints of interest, a significant decrease in the expected diagnostic signals can be observed as electromagnetic wave heating in the ion cyclotron range of frequencies (ICRF) is switched off. Utilizing only TRANSP simulation data, the fast-ion distribution is found to have been likely composed mostly of trapped orbits. In contrast, analysis performed using orbit weight functions revealed that the majority of neutrons in the KM14 Ed=9.3 MeV and MPRu Xcm=33 cm measurement bins are to have originated from fast deuterium ions on co-passing orbits. This work explains the perhaps surprising results and shows that the relative signal decrease as ICRF heating is switched off is largest for counter-passing orbits. Finally, for the magnetic equilibria of interest, it is shown how stagnation orbits, corresponding to similar to 1 % of the fast-ion distribution, were completely unobservable by the KM14 diagnostic.

In fusion plasma physics, the large-scale trajectories of energetic particles in magnetic confinement devices are known as orbits. To effectively and efficiently be able to work with orbits, the Orbit Weight Computational Framework (OWCF) was developed. The OWCF constitutes a set of scripts, functions and applications capable of computing, visualizing and working with quantities related to fast-ion (FI) orbits in toroidally symmetric fusion devices. The current version is highly integrated with the DRESS code, which enables the OWCF to compute and analyze the orbit sensitivity for arbitrary neutron- and gammadiagnostics. However, the framework is modular in the sense that any future codes (e.g. FIDASIM) can be easily integrated. The OWCF can also compute projected velocity spectra for FI orbits, which play a key role in many FI diagnostics. Via interactive applications, the OWCF can function both as a tool for investigative research but also for teaching. The OWCF will be used to analyze and simulate the diagnostic results of current and future fusion experiments such as ITER. The orbit weight functions computed with the OWCF can be used to reconstruct the FI distribution in terms of FI orbits from experimental measurements using tomographic inversion.(c) 2023 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons .org /licenses /by /4 .0/).

The fast-ion phase-space distribution function in axisymmetric tokamak plasmas is completely described by the three constants of motion: energy, magnetic moment and toroidal canonical angular momentum. In this work, the observable regions of constants-of-motion phase-space, given a diagnostic setup, are identified and explained using projected velocities of the fast ions along the diagnostic lines-of-sight as a proxy for several fast-ion diagnostics, such as fast-ion D alpha spectroscopy, collective Thomson scattering, neutron emission spectroscopy and gamma-ray spectroscopy. The observable region in constants-of-motion space is given by a position condition and a velocity condition, and the diagnostic sensitivity is given by a gyro-orbit and a drift-orbit weighting. As a practical example, 3D orbit weight functions quantifying the diagnostic sensitivity to each point in phase-space are computed and investigated for the future COMPASS-Upgrade and MAST-Upgrade tokamaks.

In the frame of the design activities of the Divertor Tokamak Test (DTT) facility the development of a comprehensive set of neutron and gamma-ray diagnostics is on-going in order to enable measurements of: neutron yield, neutron yield rate, neutron emissivity over a poloidal section through the plasma; neutron emission spectrum; runaway electrons induced bremsstrahlung radiation and gamma-ray emission from reactions between fast ions and plasma impurities. The present paper provides an overview of the DTT neutron and gamma-ray diagnostics and describes the present status of their design including main components and interfaces, detector types and performances.

We present a new version of the FILDSIM code (Galdon-Quíroga et al 2018 Plasma Phys. Control. Fusion60 105005), which significantly refines the modelling of the fast-ion loss detector (FILD) signal. We demonstrate that the FILD weight functions computed using this new version of FILDSIM are more accurate relative to synthetic benchmarks than those computed using the previous version. Thus, the new version enables higher-quality velocity-space sensitivity modelling and reconstructions. We validate the improvements on experimental data from discharge #75620 at TCV. Additionally, we present a novel approach for characterizing FILDs through a gross FILD measurement and a gross weight function based on the calculations from the new version of FILDSIM. We use them to characterize the TCV FILD.

We present a new version of the FILDSIM code (Galdon-Quíroga et al 2018 Plasma Phys. Control. Fusion 60 105005), which significantly refines the modelling of the fast-ion loss detector (FILD) signal. We demonstrate that the FILD weight functions computed using this new version of FILDSIM are more accurate relative to synthetic benchmarks than those computed using the previous version. Thus, the new version enables higher-quality velocity-space sensitivity modelling and reconstructions. We validate the improvements on experimental data from discharge #75620 at TCV. Additionally, we present a novel approach for characterizing FILDs through a gross FILD measurement and a gross weight function based on the calculations from the new version of FILDSIM. We use them to characterize the TCV FILD.

Fast-ion loss detectors (FILDs) are crucial for analyzing fast-ion dynamics in magnetically confined fusion plasmas. A core challenge is to derive an accurate ion velocity distribution, requiring treatment of thousands of remapped camera frames for a full discharge. The ill-posed nature of this task necessitates regularization with a well-chosen regularization parameter and computationally efficient methods. In this work, we introduce the ‘resolution principle,’ a novel criterion for selecting the optimal regularization parameter, providing a distinction between genuine features and artefacts smaller than the diagnostic resolution in the reconstruction, thereby preventing misinterpretations. This principle, coupled with three iterative reconstruction techniques—Kaczmarz’s method, coordinate descent, and Cimmino’s method—demonstrates enhanced reconstruction capabilities compared to conventional methods like Tikhonov regularization. Utilizing these techniques allows rapid processing of measurements from full discharges, removing the computational bottleneck and facilitating between-discharge reconstructions. By reconstructing 6000 camera frames from an ELMy H-mode discharge at ASDEX Upgrade, we capture the temporal evolution of gyroradii and pitch angles, unveiling a direct correlation between pitch-angle behavior and changes in the toroidal magnetic field for a specific subset of lost ions accelerated by edge-localized modes (ELMs) to energies approximately twice that of the injection energy.

We compute reconstructions of 4D and 5D fast-ion phase-space distribution functions in fusion plasmas from synthetic projections of these functions. The fast-ion phase-space distribution functions originating from neutral beam injection (NBI) at TCV and Wendelstein 7-X (W7-X) at full, half, and one-third injection energies can be distinguished and particle densities of each component inferred based on 20 synthetic spectra of projected velocities at TCV and 680 at W7-X. Further, we demonstrate that an expansion into a basis of slowing-down distribution functions is equivalent to regularization using slowing-down physics as prior information. Using this technique in a Tikhonov formulation, we infer the particle density fractions for each NBI energy for each NBI beam from synthetic measurements, resulting in six unknowns at TCV and 24 unknowns at W7-X. Additionally, we show that installing 40 LOS in each of 17 ports at W7-X, providing full beam coverage and almost full angle coverage, produces the highest quality reconstructions.

The reference ion cyclotron resonance frequency (ICRF) heating schemes for ITER deuterium-tritium (D-T) plasmas at the full magnetic field of 5.3 T are second harmonic heating of T and 3He minority heating. The wave-particle resonance location for these schemes coincide and are central at a wave frequency of 53 MHz at 5.3 T. Experiments have been carried out in the second major D-T campaign (DTE2) at JET, and in its prior D campaigns, to integrate these ICRF scenarios in JET high-performance plasmas and to compare their performance with the commonly used hydrogen (H) minority heating. In 50:50 D:T plasmas, up to 35% and 5% larger fusion power and diamagnetic energy content, respectively, were obtained with second harmonic heating of T as compared to H minority heating at comparable total input powers and gas injection rates. The core ion temperature was up to 30% and 20% higher with second harmonic T and 3He minority heating, respectively, with respect to H minority heating. These are favourable results for the use of these scenarios in ITER and future fusion reactors. According to modelling, adding ICRF heating to neutral beam injection using D and T beams resulted in a 10%-20% increase of on-axis bulk ion heating in the D-T plasmas due to its localisation in the plasma core. Central power deposition was confirmed with the break-in-slope and fast Fourier transform analysis of ion and electron temperature in response to ICRF modulation. The tail temperature of fast ICRF-accelerated tritons, their enhancement of the fusion yield and time behaviour as measured by an upgraded magnetic proton recoil spectrometer and neutral particle analyser were found in agreement with theoretical predictions. No losses of ICRF-accelerated ions were observed by fast ion detectors, which was as expected given the high plasma density of n e ≈ 7-8 × 1019 m−3 in the main heating phase that limited the formation of ICRF-accelerated fast ion tails. 3He was introduced in the machine by 3He ga

The impact of fast ions, generated in the MeV-range through the efficient application of the three-ion scheme in JET plasmas, on the turbulence properties is presented through complex numerical simulations. The suppression of the ion-scale turbulent transport is studied by means of in-depth gyrokinetic numerical analyses. Such a suppression is demonstrated to be achieved in the presence of toroidal Alfvén eigenmodes (TAEs) destabilized by the highly energetic ions. Details on the TAE excitation are also provided with a multi-code analysis. The inherently nonlinear and multi-scale mechanism triggered by the fast ions, also involving the high-frequency modes and the large-scale zonal flows, is deeply analyzed. Such mechanism is thus demonstrated, with experimental validating studies, to be the main cause of turbulence suppression and improvement of ion thermal confinement. Additional simulations address the implications of reversed shear magnetic equilibrium on the turbulent transport.

Fast ion pressure profiles flattened by multiple Alfvén eigenmodes (AEs) are investigated for various neutral beam deposition powers in a multi-phase simulation, which is a combination of classical simulation and hybrid simulation for energetic particles interacting with a magnetohydrodynamic fluid. Monotonic degradation of fast ion confinement and fast ion profile stiffness is found with increasing beam deposition power. The confinement degradation and profile stiffness are caused by a sudden increase in fast ion transport flux brought about by AEs for fast ion pressure gradients above a critical value. The critical pressure gradient and the corresponding beam deposition power depend on the radial location. The fast ion pressure gradient stays moderately above the critical value, and the profiles of the fast ion pressure and fast ion transport flux spread radially outward from the inner region, where the beam is injected. It is found that the square root of the MHD fluctuation energy is proportional to the beam deposition power. Analysis of the time evolutions of the fast ion energy flux profiles reveals that intermittent avalanches take place with contributions from the multiple eigenmodes. Surface of section plots demonstrate that the resonance overlap of multiple eigenmodes accounts for the sudden increase in fast ion transport with increasing beam power. The critical gradient and critical beam power for the profile stiffness are substantially higher than the marginal stability threshold., source:https://doi.org/10.1088/0029-5515/56/11/112008, identifier:0000-0001-9323-8285

The scintillator-based fast-ion loss detector (FILD) project in Japan, Korea, and China has been accelerated in an international collaboration framework to enhance comprehensive understanding of fast-ion behaviors in toroidal fusion plasmas. The FILDs in LHD heliotron, KSTAR, HL-2A, and EAST tokamaks are successfully working as a result of joint work. Physics experiments on fast ions, such as effects of Alfvénic mode, tearing mode, resonant magnetic perturbation field, and disruption on fast-ion behaviors are ongoing. This paper describes the FILD developed for each device and those effects on fast ions in LHD, KSTAR, HL-2A, and EAST., source:Mitsutaka Isobe, Junghee Kim, Yipo Zhang, Jiafeng Chang, Kunihiro Ogawa, Jun Young Kim, Yi Liu & Liqun Hu (2017) Recent Advances of Scintillator-Based Escaping Fast Ion Diagnostics in Toroidal Fusion Plasmas in Japan, Korea, and China, Fusion Science and Technology, 72:1, 60-68, DOI: 10.1080/15361055.2017.1291044, source:https://doi.org/10.1080/15361055.2017.1291044, identifier:0000-0002-3572-1882

Neutron emission spectroscopy (NES) measurements at Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST) are described. Both measurements and simulations of the neutron energy spectrum were done for the NBI-heated plasma at EAST. The experimental results were measured by the time-of-flight (TOF) neutron spectrometer TOFED, which was moved outside the experimental hall and installed in the newly-built nuclear diagnostics laboratory. A fully digital data acquisition system based on the digitizers was designed and utilized for the TOFED, which satisfied all the primary scintillators and 16 secondary scintillators. The TOFED prototype firstly obtained the neutron time-of-flight spectra with optimized signal-to-noise ratio in the 2017 EAST experiment campaign, when the NBI heating systems were employed. The neutron time-of-flight spectra were distinctly broadened, compared to the simulation of neutron spectra from the thermal plasma with the code GENESIS. These experimental results demonstrate the capability of the time-of-flight neutron spectrometer TOFED to contribute to the studies on fast ion physics at EAST.

An understanding of fast (supra-thermal) ion behavior is of great importance in tokamak physics and is a subject studied from both theoretical and experimental perspectives. This paper investigates the spatial energy and density distributions of RF accelerated deuterons using the neutron camera at the tokamak JET. Using the 19 liquid scintillator detectors available in the neutron camera system, we obtain spatial information that cannot be accessed with a single sightline. We present a spectroscopic analysis method in which a spatially resolved model of the fast ion distribution is fitted to the pulse height spectra from all 19 detectors simultaneously. The fast ion distribution is parameterized in such a way that the density, energy, and pitch-angle parts are uncoupled. The energy part is composed of a Maxwellian distribution, characterized by an 'RF tail temperature,' and the spatial dependence is modeled as a two-dimensional Gaussian distribution on the poloidal plane of the tokamak. From this parameterized model, we can calculate the spectrum of fusion born neutrons originating from reactions involving RF accelerated deuterons, and by fitting this model to the measured neutron camera pulse height spectra, we obtain an estimate of the spatially resolved distribution of the fast deuterons. The method has been applied to three JET pulses using different RF heating schemes and is shown to identify several features of the fast ion distribution produced in the various scenarios. Hence, this method is able to provide quantitative information about the fast ion distribution resulting from different heating schemes, and can also be useful, e.g., to validate simulation results from RF modeling codes.

An integrated modelling methodology for the calculation of realistic plasma neutron sources for the JET tokamak has been developed. The computational chain comprises TRANSP plasma transport and DRESS neutron spectrum calculations, and their coupling to the MCNP neutron transport code, bridging plasma physics and neutronics. In the paper we apply the developed methodology to the analysis of neutron emission properties of deuterium and helium plasmas at JET, and validate individual modelling steps against neutron diagnostic measurements. Two types of JET discharges are modelled-baseline-like and three-ion radio-frequency scenarios-due to their diversity in plasma heating, characteristics of the induced fast ion population, and the imprint of these on neutron emission properties. The neutron emission modelling results are quantitatively compared to the total neutron yield from fission chambers, neutron emissivity profiles from the neutron camera, neutron spectra from the time-of-flight spectrometer, and neutron activation measurements. The agreement between measured and calculated quantities is found to be satisfactory for all four diagnostic systems within the estimated experimental and computational uncertainties. Additionally, the effect of neutrons not originating from the dominating D(D, n)He-3 reactions is studied through modelling of triton burnup DT neutrons, and, in mixed D-He-3 plasmas, neutrons produced in the Be-9(D, n gamma)B-10 reaction on impurities. It is found that these reactions can contribute up to several percent to the total neutron yield and dominate the neutron activation of samples. The effect of MeV-range fast ions on the neutron activation of In-115 and Al-27 samples is measured and computationally validated.

H-mode plasmas in ASDEX Upgrade (AUG) using different hydrogen isotopes are analysed with respect to their core transport properties. The experimental results are discussed and we present gyrokinetic simulations which are able to reproduce the experimental observations. A novel strategy allows us to disentangle core and pedestal physics by mitigating the isotopic dependence of pedestal properties while keeping the heat and particle sources the same. Matched pedestal profiles are obtained between hydrogen (H) and deuterium (D) plasmas when increasing the triangularity in H plasmas with respect to D plasmas. In the core of these plasmas little isotopic dependence is observed when the fast-ion content is low W fast/W th < 1/3. Quasi-linear modelling with TGLF reproduces the experimental trends under these conditions. For larger fast-ion fractions an isotope dependence is observed in the core heat transport. This is related to a difference in fast-ion stabilization of turbulent transport. The fast-ion pressure in H and D plasmas is different due to the mass dependence in the fast-ion slowing down time as well as to operational restrictions when heating with H neutral beam injection (H-NBI) or D-NBI. Typically, W fast,H < 1/2W fast,D for comparable NBI heating powers in AUG. The gyrokinetic analysis shows that linear growth rates of ITG modes do not show a pure gyro-Bohm mass dependence, but follow the experimentally observed mass dependence when taking collisions, EM-effects and fast ions into account. Non-linear gyrokinetic simulations reproduce the experimental heat fluxes for different isotopes when fast ions are included. This highlights the role of the fast-ion pressure as a key element to explain the observed differences in the core of H and D plasmas.

We demonstrate 2D reconstructions of the fast-ion velocity distribution from two-view fast-ion D-alpha (FIDA) measurements at the EAST tokamak. By expressing the distribution in a basis relying on the fast-ion slowing-down process in fusion plasmas, the smoothness and velocity-space resolution of reconstructions are improved. We reconstruct distributions of fast ions born from simultaneous co- A nd counter-current neutral beam injection and detect the expected distinct change in fast-ion birth pitch when comparing discharges utilizing different neutral beam injectors. For purely co-current injection, we find a good agreement between TRANSP-predicted and reconstructed fast-ion densities, pressures and current densities for energies above 20 keV. We furthermore illustrate the improvement of the reconstructed high-energy range (> 40 keV) of the distribution by combining FIDA with neutron emission spectroscopy measurements with the compact single-plate EJ301 scintillator.