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An overview of recent results obtained at the tokamak ASDEX Upgrade (AUG) is given. A work flow for predictive profile modelling of AUG discharges was established which is able to reproduce experimental H-mode plasma profiles based on engineering parameters only. In the plasma center, theoretical predictions on plasma current redistribution by a dynamo effect were confirmed experimentally. For core transport, the stabilizing effect of fast ion distributions on turbulent transport is shown to be important to explain the core isotope effect and improves the description of hollow low-Z impurity profiles. The L–H power threshold of hydrogen plasmas is not affected by small helium admixtures and it increases continuously from the deuterium to the hydrogen level when the hydrogen concentration is raised from 0 to 100%. One focus of recent campaigns was the search for a fusion relevant integrated plasma scenario without large edge localised modes (ELMs). Results from six different ELM-free confinement regimes are compared with respect to reactor relevance: ELM suppression by magnetic perturbation coils could be attributed to toroidally asymmetric turbulent fluctuations in the vicinity of the separatrix. Stable improved confinement mode plasma phases with a detached inner divertor were obtained using a feedback control of the plasma β. The enhanced Dα H-mode regime was extended to higher heating power by feedback controlled radiative cooling with argon. The quasi-coherent exhaust regime was developed into an integrated scenario at high heating power and energy confinement, with a detached divertor and without large ELMs. Small ELMs close to the separatrix lead to peeling-ballooning stability and quasi continuous power exhaust. Helium beam density fluctuation measurements confirm that transport close to the separatrix is important to achieve the different ELM-free regimes. Based on separatrix plasma parameters and interchange-drift-Alfvén turbulence, an analytic model was derived that reproduces the experimentally found important operational boundaries of the density limit and between L- and H-mode confinement. Feedback control for the X-point radiator (XPR) position was established as an important element for divertor detachment control. Stable and detached ELM-free phases with H-mode confinement quality were obtained when the XPR was moved 10 cm above the X-point. Investigations of the plasma in the future flexible snow-flake divertor of AUG by means of first SOLPS-ITER simulations with drifts activated predict beneficial detachment properties and the activation of an additional strike point by the drifts. This work has been carried out within the framework of the EUROfusion Consortium and has received funding from the Euratom research and training programme 2014–2018 and 2019–2020 under Grant Agreement No. 633053. The views and opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect those of the European Commission. Peer Reviewed "Article signat per més de 50 autors/es: U. Stroth, D. Aguiam, E. Alessi, C. Angioni, N. Arden, R. Arredondo Parra, V. Artigues, O. Asunta, M. Balden, V. Bandaru, A. Banon-Navarro, K. Behler, A. Bergmann, M. Bergmann, J. Bernardo, M. Bernert, A. Biancalani, R. Bielajew, R. Bilato, G. Birkenmeier, T. Blanken, V. Bobkov, A. Bock, T. Body, T. Bolzonella, N. Bonanomi, A. Bortolon, B. Böswirth, C. Bottereau, A. Bottino, H. van den Brand, M. Brenzke, S. Brezinsek, D. Brida, F. Brochard, C. Bruhn, J. Buchanan, A. Buhler, A. Burckhart, Y. Camenen, B. Cannas, P. Cano Megias, D. Carlton, M. Carr, P. Carvalho, C. Castaldo, M. Cavedon, C. Cazzaniga, C. Challis, A. Chankin, C. Cianfarani, F. Clairet, S. Coda, R. Coelho, J.W. Coenen, L. Colas, G. Conway, S. Costea, D. Coster, T. Cote, A.J. Creely, G. Croci, D.J. Cruz Zabala, G. Cseh, A. Czarnecka, I. Cziegler, O. D'Arcangelo, A. Dal Molin, P. David, C. Day, M. de Baar, P. de Marné, R. Delogu, S. Denk, P. Denner, A. Di Siena, J.J. Dominguez Palacios Durán, D. Dunai, A. Drenik, M. Dreval, R. Drube, M. Dunne, B.P. Duval, R. Dux, T. Eich, S. Elgeti, A. Encheva, K. Engelhardt, B. Erdös, I. Erofeev, B. Esposito, E. Fable, M. Faitsch, U. Fantz, M. Farnik, H. Faugel, F. Felici, O. Ficker, S. Fietz, A. Figueredo, R. Fischer, O. Ford, L. Frassinetti, M. Fröschle, G. Fuchert, J.C. Fuchs, H. Fünfgelder, S. Futatani, K. Galazka, J. Galdon-Quiroga, D. Gallart Escolà, A. Gallo10, Y. Gao11, S. Garavaglia3, M. Garcia Muñoz16, B. Geiger21, L. Giannone1, S. Gibson32, L. Gil2, E. Giovannozzi18, S. Glöggler1, M. Gobbin8, J. Gonzalez Martin, T. Goodman, G. Gorini, T. Görler, D. Gradic, G. Granucci, A. Gräter, H. Greuner, M. Griener, M. Groth, A. Gude, L. Guimarais, S. Günter, G. Haas, A.H. Hakola, C. Ham, T. Happel, N. den Harder, G. Harrer, J. Harrison, V. Hauer, T. Hayward-Schneider, B. Heinemann, T. Hellsten, S. Henderson, P. Hennequin, A. Herrmann, E. Heyn, F. Hitzler, J. Hobirk, K. Höfler, J.H. Holm, M. Hölzl, C. Hopf, L. Horvath, T. Höschen, A. Houben, A. Hubbard, A. Huber, K. Hunger, V. Igochine, M. Iliasova, T. Ilkei, K. Insulander Björk, C. Ionita-Schrittwieser, I. Ivanova-Stanik, W. Jacob, N. Jaksic, F. Janky, A. Jansen van Vuuren, A. Jardin, F. Jaulmes, F. Jenko, T. Jensen, E. Joffrin, A. Kallenbach, S. Kálvin, M. Kantor, A. Kappatou, O. Kardaun, J. Karhunen4, C.-P. Käsemann, S. Kasilov, A. Kendl, W. Kernbichler, E. Khilkevitch, A. Kirk, S. Kjer Hansen, V. Klevarova, G. Kocsis, M. Koleva, M. Komm, M. Kong, A. Krämer-Flecken, K. Krieger, A. Krivska, O. Kudlacek, T. Kurki-Suonio, B. Kurzan, B. Labit, K. Lackner, F. Laggner, A. Lahtinen, P.T. Lang, P. Lauber, N. Leuthold, L. Li, J. Likonen, O. Linder, B. Lipschultz, Y. Liu, A. Lohs, Z. Lu, T. Luda di Cortemiglia, N.C. Luhmann, T. Lunt, A. Lyssoivan, T. Maceina, J. Madsen, A. Magnanimo, H. Maier, J. Mailloux, R. Maingi, O. Maj, E. Maljaars, P. Manas, A. Mancini, A. Manhard, P. Mantica, M. Mantsinen, P. Manz, M. Maraschek, C. Marchetto, L. Marrelli, P. Martin, A. Martitsch, F. Matos, M. Mayer, M.-L. Mayoral, D. Mazon, P.J. McCarthy, R. McDermott, R. Merkel, A. Merle, D. Meshcheriakov, H. Meyer, D. Milanesio, P. Molina Cabrera, F. Monaco, M. Muraca, F. Nabais, V. Naulin, R. Nazikian, R.D. Nem, A. Nemes-Czopf, G. Neu, R. Neu, A.H. Nielsen, S.K. Nielsen, T. Nishizawa, M. Nocente, J.-M. Noterdaeme, I. Novikau, S. Nowak, M. Oberkofler, R. Ochoukov, J. Olsen, F. Orain, F. Palermo, O. Pan, G. Papp, I. Paradela Perez, A. Pau, G. Pautasso, C. Paz-Soldan, P. Petersson, P. Piovesan, C. Piron, U. Plank, B. Plaum, B. Plöck, V. Plyusnin, G. Pokol, E. Poli, L. Porte, T. Pütterich, M. Ramisch, J. Rasmussen, G. Ratta, S. Ratynskaia, G. Raupp, D. Réfy, M. Reich1, F. Reimold, D. Reiser, M. Reisner, D. Reiter, T. Ribeiro, R. Riedl, J. Riesch, D. Rittich, J.F. Rivero Rodriguez, G. Rocchi, P. Rodriguez-Fernandez, M. Rodriguez-Ramos, V. Rohde, G. Ronchi, A. Ross, M. Rott, M. Rubel, D.A. Ryan, F. Ryter, S. Saarelma, M. Salewski, A. Salmi, O. Samoylov, L. Sanchis Sanchez, J. Santos, O. Sauter, G. Schall, K. Schlüter, K. Schmid, O. Schmitz, P.A. Schneider, R. Schrittwieser, M. Schubert, C. Schuster, T. Schwarz-Selinger, J. Schweinzer, E. Seliunin, A. Shabbir, A. Shalpegin, S. Sharapov, U. Sheikh, A. Shevelev, G. Sias, M. Siccinio, B. Sieglin, A. Sigalov, A. Silva, C. Silva, D. Silvagni, J. Simpson, S. Sipilä, E. Smigelskis, A. Snicker, E. Solano, C. Sommariva, C. Sozzi, G. Spizzo, M. Spolaore, A. Stegmeir, M. Stejner, J. Stober, E. Strumberge1, G. Suarez Lopez, H.-J. Sun, W. Suttrop, E. Sytova, T. Szepesi, B. Tál, T. Tala, G. Tardini, M. Tardocchi, D. Terranova, M. Teschke, E. Thorén, W. Tierens, D. Told, W. Treutterer, G. Trevisan, E. Trier, M. Tripský, M. Usoltceva, M. Valisa, M. Valovic, M. van Zeeland, F. Vannini, B. Vanovac, P. Varela, S. Varoutis, N. Vianello, J. Vicente, G. Verdoolaege, T. Vierle, E. Viezzer, I. Voitsekhovitch, U. von Toussaint, D. Wagner, X. Wang, M. Weiland, A.E. White, M. Willensdorfer, B. Wiringer, M. Wischmeier, R. Wolf, E. Wolfrum, Q. Yang, Q. Yu, R. Zagórski, I. Zammuto, T. Zehetbauer, W. Zhang, W. Zholobenko, M. Zilker, A. Zito, H. Zohm, S. Zoletnik and the EUROfusion MST1 Team "

Suicide is among the leading causes of death among adolescents and suicide risk is particularly high after discharge from psychiatric inpatient care. Therefore, interventions to reduce suicidal thoughts and behaviours (STBs) among adolescents discharged from psychiatric inpatient care are integral for successful suicide prevention among this group. However, such interventions are scarce. EMIRA aims to close this important gap in mental health services by developing an ecological momentary intervention (i.e., intervention delivered in real-time and within one's natural setting) consisting of a personalized, automatically triggered crisis support smartphone app to reduce STBs after discharge from psychiatric inpatient care among adolescents aged 14-21 years at risk for suicide. First, we will conduct qualitative interviews with adolescents aged 14-21 years who previously experienced STBs, their parents and health care providers to identify their intervention needs and safety concerns regarding ecological momentary assessment (EMA). Next, we will investigate the short-term variability of STBs and their cognitive and physiological risk factors among adolescents aged 14-21 years using EMA (app-based self-report + wrist worn device). Based on our results and past research we will develop a personalized crisis support smartphone app (mobile safety planning) that is not only self-accessible but starts automatically based on the presence of pre-identified STB risk factors. Finally, we will conduct two consecutive studies to test the feasibility, efficacy and cost-effectiveness of the developed ecological momentary intervention in reducing STBs after discharge from psychiatric inpatient care among adolescents aged 14-21 years at risk for suicide. EMIRA has great potential to close a crucial gap in adolescent mental health services and significantly improve suicide prevention among this group.

The coupling of ion cyclotron range of frequencies (ICRF) power to the plasma depends critically on the scrape-off layer (SOL) density since the fast wave is evanescent below the cut-off density. The ICRF power coupling can be improved by increasing the SOL density locally in front of the antenna by means of local gas puffing/fueling. To understand the influence of local gas puffing on the SOL and ICRF coupling and to find the optimized gas valve positions to maximize ICRF coupling in ITER, the 3D SOL code EMC3-EIRENE is used to calculate the SOL density, and the ICRF antenna codes ANTITER and FELICE are then used to calculate the coupling resistances. Purely deuterium plasma is simulated and the total gas puff rate for all studied cases is 4.5e22 el/s. The divertor gas puffing case is considered as the reference case. The density and temperature profiles in the reference case are well fitted to the standard ITER profiles (both for the low and medium density) with proper transport parameter profiles. The gas source is then switched to other local positions of the main chamber while all other simulation parameters are kept the same. The simulation results indicate that midplane gas puffing increases the antenna coupling resistance most significantly (by 150%-200%) for both ICRF antennas. This increase is at the same level as long as the gas valve is located toroidally close to the antenna, no matter if the gas valve is right to or left to the antenna. Outer top gas puffing increases the coupling resistance less significantly (by 100%–150%) for the antenna with good magnetic field line connections to the gas valve, but the increase is at a much smaller level (by ∼30%–60%) for the other antenna with only partial field line connections to the valve. The simulations thus confirm for ITER a behavior similar as seen experimentally in current devices and strongly suggest that ITER should modify the existing main chamber injection configuration to bring one of the four planned injection points closer to the antennas.

Following the improvements of compatibility of ICRF system with the tungsten (W) wall in ASDEX Upgrade (AUG) by using the boron-coated limiters on the 2-strap ICRF antennas and the 3-strap antennas with the W-limiters, the ICRF operating space was further extended in 3 areas: power, phase control between the antennas and frequency range. The available ICRF power in AUG was increased by using an additional RF generator to feed the central straps of the 3-strap antennas which require a 1.5:1 or 2:1 power ratio between the central strap and the two outer straps (combined) to minimize the ICRF-specific W sources. This increases the total experimentally achievable launched ICRF power in the optimized configuration to similar to 5.7 MW. A new phase control system enabled phase-locked operation of all 4 AUG ICRF antennas. This allows a better control of the launched k(parallel to) spectrum which on its turn is modified when both neighboring antennas are active, as well as of the structure of the global RF field distribution within the AUG vessel. Measurements by the RF magnetic field (B-dot) probes show that the RF field distribution can indeed be significantly affected by the variation of the phasing between the ICRF antenna pairs. However, its effect on the core plasma and on the residual ICRF specific plasma-wall interactions is small, for the cases so far limited to the H-modes at medium plasma densities. The available frequency range was extended and now covers four discrete frequencies (f): 30.0, 36.5, 41.8 and 55.1 MHz. In addition to the standard hydrogen (H) minority in deuterium (D) on-axis heating scheme at the magnetic field (B-t) of 2.0, 2.5, 2.8 and 3.1 T, the RF frequency range allows the use of the 3-ion D-(He-3)-H and He-4-(He-3)-H heating schemes at B-t=2.5-3.1 T (f=30 MHz - off-axis and on-axis), on-axis 3 omega(c) D heating at B-t=1.9 T (f=41.8 MHz) and at B-t=2.5 T (f=55.1 MHz) and 2 omega(c) H heating at B-t=1.9T (f=55.1 MHz).

International audience; Travelling Wave Array (TWA) antennas distributed along the periphery of the tokamak are presently considered as Ion Cyclotron Resonance Frequencies (ICRF) heating solution for the DEMO reactor. Compared to the conventional ICRF antenna systems currently in use or designed for future machines like ITER, the TWA consists of antenna sections integrated in the breeding blanket scattered around the machine, each one fed through a variable coupler in a resonant ring configuration. Previous modelling of an antenna system for DEMO with 16 quadruple TWA sections of 8 straps shows that a power capability exceeding 50 MW can be obtained in the frequency band of interest using the reference low coupling plasma profile of ITER. The described system optimizes the coupling to the plasma by providing a large number of radiating elements, which results in enhanced antenna directivity hereby decreasing the antenna power density. This results in a maximum strap voltage amplitude of only 15 kV and maximum inter-strap voltage amplitude of 18 kV. The generators remain matched for all loading conditions: the system is totally load resilient. Following the recommendation of the work package heating and current drive (WPHCD) Review Panel, a TWA ICRH system consisting in fewer sections concentrated in front of the equatorial ports is analysed in this paper and compared to the previous design. Reducing the number of sections increases the power density and its associated voltages. To couple 50 MW on the ITER density profile, voltages up to 30 kV are now required. Some aspects like the coupling between sections and its repercussion on the feeding network are briefly discussed. To assess the feasibility of the TWA fed by a resonant ring as ICRH system for a DEMO reactor, a test on an existing medium size tokamak is under study.

The paper presents the first reported observation of high frequency Alfvén eigenmode excitation on the ASDEX Upgrade tokamak. The mode is driven in a novel way using radio frequency (RF) wave acceleration of either beam-injected deuterium ions or thermal He-3 minority ions in a three-ion heating scenario. In the case of beam ion acceleration, the instability only appears during deuteron acceleration at the third beam ion cyclotron harmonic (wave frequency ω = 3ΩD where ΩD is the deuterium cyclotron frequency), as the mode is not detected during the more commonly used second harmonic/minority heating scenario or in the absence of beam-injected ions. The mode frequency is around 0.6–0.7ΩD, where ΩD is evaluated in the low-field side plasma edge, and tracks the magnetic field B and the edge plasma electron density ne via the Alfvénic relation ω ∼ B ne −1/2. The mode does not appear as a single frequency wave but as a bundle of closely spaced (in frequency) sub-modes. When the parallel beam ion velocity component is increased, the sub-mode frequency spacing is observed to decrease, possibly due to a change in the eigenmode structure. Under certain conditions, typically in discharges with a relatively low plasma current, IP < 0.7 MA, the mode appears to be driven directly by sub-Alfvénic deuterium beam ions. Absolute measurements of the mode amplitude show that at least 1% of the beam-injected power is transferred non-collisionally to the instability. While this is too low for practical alpha-channeling applications, discharges are planned with the aim of increasing the level of power transferred non-collisionally between fast ions and the instability.

The influence of ELMs on the propagation of fast wave in the ion cyclotron range of frequency is studied. The 3D edge turbulence code BOUT++ with the Six-field two-fluid model is used to calculate the perturbed density during ELMs, and the antenna code RAPLICASOL is then applied to calculate the antenna fields using the calculated 3D density. The results indicate that ELMs can cause an electric field perturbation in the range of 4.5% - 45% for an ELM induced density perturbation in the range of 3%-30%.

Heating and current drive (H&CD) systems are being investigated for a demonstration fusion power plant DEMO to deliver net electricity for the grid around 2050. Compared to ITER, which has to show the generation of 500-MW thermal power, the target of DEMO is the successful production of 300 to 500 MW electrical power to the grid and to aim for a self-sufficient tritium fuel cycle. Three H&CD systems are under development for DEMO in Europe, the electron cyclotron (EC) system, the neutral beam injection (NBI) system, and the ion cyclotron system. Based on present studies for plasma ramp-up, ramp-down, and flat top phases, to be further validated in more detailed simulations, the assumed total launched power needed from the H&CD system in DEMO is in the range of 50-100 MW, to be provided for plasma heating and control. This paper describes the design and Research and Development status of selected H&CD systems, considered for their deployment in the EU DEMO. It was always considered that different H&CD configurations and design variants will have an impact on the performances for the whole fusion plant. It shall be noted that the basis for the H&CD integrated design and system development is the actual version of the European fusion electricity roadmap. The project also elaborates on H&CD efficiency improvements which will reduce the recirculating power fraction in the future fusion power plants. Different studies under investigation will be discussed such as for NBI the photoneutralization and for EC novel concepts for gyrotron multistage-depressed collector.

The new multichannel X-mode reflectometer installed on ASDEX Upgrade measures the plasma density profile evolution at different positions in front of the ICRF antenna. The reflectometer operates in the extended U-band (40–68 GHz) microwave region, measuring density profiles up to 2 × 1019 m−3 with magnetic fields between 1.5 T and 2.7 T. In this heterodyne reflectometer architecture, the signal reflected by the plasma is down-shifted and quadrature detectors demodulate its in-phase and quadrature (IQ) components. In this work we analysed the acquired IQ signals from the different reflectometer antennas, and describe the waveguide dispersion calibration and filtering of the raw signal. The effect of spurious reflections, such as the multiple reflections from the ICRF antenna metal straps, are analysed and taken into account on the data processing software. In high plasma density and high magnetic field scenarios, both the lower and upper X-mode cut off frequencies are detected in the probing range. The first fringe (FF) reflection of the upper cut off indicates the start of the plasma signal and must be determined robustly to reduce density profile errors. Existing FF estimation algorithms based on signal amplitude and spectral information may still fail in the presence of both upper and lower cut off reflections.

Blob transport properties in the plasma edge in the presence and absence of radio-frequency (RF) convective cells are compared. For the first time, the interactions between RF convective cells and intermittent plasma blobs in the scrape-off layer (SOL) are observed with gas puff imaging in the ASDEX Upgrade tokamak. It is found that the RF convective cells induce a sheared flow in the far SOL, which is able to stretch, distort and even split the blobs poloidally. The observed phenomena indicate that an externally generated sheared flow in the SOL can be considered as a method to modify blob transport in a favorable way.

Existence of high electric fields near an RF antenna launcher causes a number of parasitic phenomena, such as arcing and impurity release, which seriously deteriorate the performance of an Ion Cyclotron Range of Frequencies (ICRF) heating scheme in fusion devices. Limited accessibility of the near antenna region in large-scale fusion experiments significantly complicates the associated experimental studies. The IShTAR test facility has been developed with the requirement to provide a better accessibility and diagnosability of plasmas in the direct vicinity of an ICRF antenna. The purpose of this work is to give a detailed description on the experimental setup and the available diagnostics. Furthermore, the paper will demonstrate the capability of the experiment to study phenomena near an ICRF antenna launcher which are relevant for large-scale fusion ion cyclotron resonance heating systems.

Core ion cyclotron emission (ICE) signals have recently been observed in beam-heated plasmas on several tokamaks. In this manuscript we present experimental evidence in support of core ICE being generated by the magnetoacoustic cyclotron instability (MCI), itself driven by the velocity-space inversion of sub-Alfvenic beam-injected ions. The observed core ICE amplitude evolution in beam-heated plasmas is consistent with the MCI and is a result of competition between the beam ion fraction build-up (which increases the instability growth rate) and the slowing down of the dominant beam ion velocity component (which stabilizes the MCI). The oblique propagation angle is constrained to lie in the range 75–78°, where the lower bound is governed by the fast wave reabsorption losses on plasma electrons and bulk ions and the upper bound is governed by the experimentally observed ICE amplitude growth time. Although the oblique MCI is a local theory and does not provide information on the radial mode localization, the calculated instability growth rates are broadly consistent with the observed dynamics of the core ICE amplitude on the ASDEX Upgrade tokamak.

An Ion Cyclotron Range of Frequency (ICRF) system can provide power for a number of tasks, experimentally verified on present machines: heating and current drive, first wall conditioning, plasma startup, removing central impurities, controlling sawteeth and current ramp down assist. The system has a high plug-to-power efficiency and most of the components external to the machine are sturdy, with industrial steady state capability. Traditional ICRF antenna systems are often characterized by a high operating voltage and high power density. Low power density and low voltage however provides a bonus in terms of reliability. Therefore, travelling wave type antennas have been proposed (Ragona and Messiaen, 2016). They can be integrated in the blanket and use only a limited number of feeders. The effect on the tritium breeding ratio of such an antenna incorporated in the blanket, including the feeders, is small. The k// spectrum is peaked and the dominant k// value can be optimized for coupling and bulk absorption, while avoiding the generation of coaxial modes in the edge. The coupling can be further enhanced with gas puffing near the antenna. Assuming the ITER-2010-low density profile, 50 MW can be coupled with a voltage on the antenna components of about 15 kV.

Ion cyclotron emission (ICE) signals whose spectral peaks match the fundamental cyclotron frequencies of hydrogen and tritium in the plasma core, near the magnetic axis, are observed in ASDEX Upgrade deuterium plasmas. In these cases the only source of energetic (⩾1 MeV) hydrogen and tritium ions is D–D fusion reactions between neutral beam injected deuterium ions and bulk deuterium ions. Hydrogen-matched core ICE is observed in a wide variety of ASDEX Upgrade plasmas, while tritium-matched core ICE is (so far) only observed in so-called H-mode density limit plasmas. In all cases ICE signals are detected directly using B-dot probes, which provide information on the emission frequency, the amplitude, and, in principle, the parallel wavenumber values. These observations support the idea of using an ICE-based diagnostic to monitor the presence of fusion-born alpha particles in tritium-burning fusion plasmas on devices such as JET, ITER, CFETR, or DEMO.

Ion cyclotron range of frequencies (ICRF) wave propagation is calculated theoretically for tokamak conditions and for linear magnetized plasma device IShTAR which is dedicated to the RF sheath studies. Only the slow wave (SW) mode of ICRF waves can propagate and be studied in IShTAR. Therefore it is possible to decouple the role of the different ICRF modes in the RF sheath effects. Numerical simulations of the ICRF SW are done in COMSOL in the framework of the existing cold plasma modelling package RAPLICASOL and the SW is for the first time modelled in 3D. To date, RAPLICASOL existed as a 3D wave coupling modelling approach which targets the fast wave (FW). Plasma is implemented as a material with manually assigned physical properties and a perfectly matched layer (PML) is used to absorb the wave energy. Here it is demonstarted how to adjust the RAPLICASOL PML for models with propagating SW. Field structures in the resonance cone shape obtained for the SW differ significantly from the FW and exhibit strong dependence on the density profile in the close proximity of the antenna. The lower-hybrid (LH) resonance is a constant issue in the attempts to model the SW. In this work an approach to obtain correct numerical solutions in the LH resonance presence is demonstrated. Results of this work can be used to improve the complex tokamak ICRF simulations, where so far the SW propagation on the edge has been avoided.

An ongoing objective in the ion cyclotron range of frequencies (ICRF) systems is the improvement of power coupling to the plasma. During the last decade, this goal has been mainly pursued through the study of the coupling resistance, either by optimizing the antenna layout or by tailoring the scrape-off layer profile with gas puffing. Another approach is to increase the voltage handling capability of the ICRF system, limited by breakdown in the launchers or in the transmission lines. This paper describes the design of the ICRF Breakdown EXperiment (IBEX), a device to investigate fundamental aspects of radio frequency arcs under ICRF-relevant conditions. IBEX can achieve a peak voltage of 48 kV at 54 MHz with a 5 kW input power.

The B-dot probe diagnostic suite on the ASDEX Upgrade tokamak has recently been upgraded with a new 125 MHz, 14 bit resolution digitizer to study ion cyclotron emission (ICE). While classic edge emission from the low field side plasma is often observed, we also measure waves originating from the core with fast fusion protons or beam injected deuterons being a possible emission driver. Comparing the measured frequency values with ion cyclotron harmonics present in the plasma places the origin of this emission on the magnetic axis, with the fundamental hydrogen/second deuterium cyclotron harmonic matching the observed values. The actual values range from ∼27 MHz at the on-axis toroidal field BT = -1.79 T to ∼40 MHz at BT = -2.62 T. When the magnetic axis position evolves during this emission, the measured frequency values track the changes in the estimated on-axis cyclotron frequency values. Core ICE is usually a transient event lasting ∼100 ms during the neutral beam startup phase. However, in some cases, core emission occurs in steady-state plasmas and lasts for longer than 1 s. These observations suggest an attractive possibility of using a non-perturbing ICE-based diagnostic to passively monitor fusion alpha particles at the location of their birth in the plasma core, in deuterium-tritium burning devices such as ITER and DEMO.

The ASDEX Upgrade (AUG) programme, jointly run with the EUROfusion MST1 task force, continues to significantly enhance the physics base of ITER and DEMO. Here, the full tungsten wall is a key asset for extrapolating to future devices. The high overall heating power, flexible heating mix and comprehensive diagnostic set allows studies ranging from mimicking the scrape-off-layer and divertor conditions of ITER and DEMO at high density to fully non-inductive operation (q95 = 5.5, ) at low density. Higher installed electron cyclotron resonance heating power 6 MW, new diagnostics and improved analysis techniques have further enhanced the capabilities of AUG. Stable high-density H-modes with MW m−1 with fully detached strike-points have been demonstrated. The ballooning instability close to the separatrix has been identified as a potential cause leading to the H-mode density limit and is also found to play an important role for the access to small edge-localized modes (ELMs). Density limit disruptions have been successfully avoided using a path-oriented approach to disruption handling and progress has been made in understanding the dissipation and avoidance of runaway electron beams. ELM suppression with resonant magnetic perturbations is now routinely achieved reaching transiently . This gives new insight into the field penetration physics, in particular with respect to plasma flows. Modelling agrees well with plasma response measurements and a helically localised ballooning structure observed prior to the ELM is evidence for the changed edge stability due to the magnetic perturbations. The impact of 3D perturbations on heat load patterns and fast-ion losses have been further elaborated. Progress has also been made in understanding the ELM cycle itself. Here, new fast measurements of and Er allow for inter ELM transport analysis confirming that Er is dominated by the diamagnetic term even for fast timescales. New analysis techniques allow detailed comparison of the ELM crash and are in good agreement with nonlinear MHD modelling. The observation of accelerated ions during the ELM crash can be seen as evidence for the reconnection during the ELM. As type-I ELMs (even mitigated) are likely not a viable operational regime in DEMO studies of 'natural' no ELM regimes have been extended. Stable I-modes up to have been characterised using -feedback. Core physics has been advanced by more detailed characterisation of the turbulence with new measurements such as the eddy tilt angle—measured for the first time—or the cross-phase angle of and fluctuations. These new data put strong constraints on gyro-kinetic turbulence modelling. In addition, carefully executed studies in different main species (H, D and He) and with different heating mixes highlight the importance of the collisional energy exchange for interpreting energy confinement. A new regime with a hollow profile now gives access to regimes mimicking aspects of burning plasma conditions and lead to nonlinear interactions of energetic particle modes despite the sub-Alfvénic beam energy. This will help to validate the fast-ion codes for predicting ITER and DEMO. This work has been carried out within the framework of the EUROfusion Consortium and has received funding from the Euratom research and training programme 2014–2018 and 2019–2020 under grant agreement No. 633053. The views and opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect those of the European Commission. "Article signat per més de 100 autors/es: H. Meyer, for the AUG Team: D. Aguiam, C. Angioni, C.G. Albert, N. Arden, R. Arredondo Parra, O. Asunta, M. de Baar, M. Balden, V. Bandaru, K. Behler, A. Bergmann, J. Bernardo, M. Bernert, A. Biancalani, R. Bilato, G. Birkenmeier, T.C. Blanken, V. Bobkov, A. Bock, T. Bolzonella, A. Bortolon, B. Böswirth, C. Bottereau, A. Bottino, H. van den Brand, S. Brezinsek, D. Brida, F. Brochard, C. Bruhn, J. Buchanan, A. Buhler, A. Burckhart, Y. Camenen, D. Carlton, M. Carr, D. Carralero, C. Castaldo, M. Cavedon, C. Cazzaniga, S. Ceccuzzi, C. Challis, A. Chankin, S. Chapman, C. Cianfarani, F. Clairet, S. Coda, R. Coelho, J.W. Coenen, L. Colas, G.D. Conway, S. Costea, D.P. Coster, T.B. Cote, A. Creely, G. Croci, G. Cseh, A. Czarnecka, I. Cziegler, O. D'Arcangelo, P. David, C. Day, R. Delogu, P. de Marné, S.S. Denk, P. Denner, M. Dibon, A. Di Siena, D. Douai, A. Drenik, R. Drube, M. Dunne, B.P. Duval, R. Dux, T. Eich, S. Elgeti, K. Engelhardt, B. Erdös, I. Erofeev, B. Esposito, E. Fable, M. Faitsch, U. Fantz, H. Faugel, I. Faust, F. Felici, J. Ferreira, S. Fietz, A. Figuereido, R. Fischer, O. Ford, L. Frassinetti, S. Freethy, M. Fröschle, G. Fuchert, J.C. Fuchs, H. Fünfgelder, K. Galazka, J. Galdon-Quiroga, A. Gallo, Y. Gao, S. Garavaglia, A. Garcia-Carrasco, M. Garcia-Muñoz, B. Geiger, L. Giannone, L. Gil, E. Giovannozzi, C. Gleason-González, S. Glöggler, M. Gobbin, T. Görler, I. Gomez Ortiz, J. Gonzalez Martin, T. Goodman, G. Gorini, D. Gradic, A. Gräter, G. Granucci, H. Greuner, M. Griener, M. Groth, A. Gude, S. Günter, L. Guimarais, G. Haas, A.H. Hakola, C. Ham, T. Happel, N. den Harder, G.F. Harrer, J. Harrison, V. Hauer, T. Hayward-Schneider, C.C. Hegna, B. Heinemann, S. Heinzel, T. Hellsten, S. Henderson, P. Hennequin, A. Herrmann, M.F. Heyn, E. Heyn, F. Hitzler, J. Hobirk, K. Höfler, M. Hölzl, T. Höschen, J.H. Holm, C. Hopf, W.A. Hornsby, L. Horvath, A. Houben, A. Huber, V. Igochine, T. Ilkei, I. Ivanova-Stanik, W. Jacob, A.S. Jacobsen, F. Janky, A. Jansen van Vuuren, A. Jardin, F. Jaulmes, F. Jenko, T. Jensen, E. Joffrin, C.-P. Käsemann, A. Kallenbach, S. Kálvin, M. Kantor, A. Kappatou, O. Kardaun, J. Karhunen, S. Kasilov,, Y. Kazakov, W. Kernbichler, A. Kirk, S. Kjer Hansen, V. Klevarova, G. Kocsis, A. Köhn, M. Koubiti, K. Krieger, A. Krivska, A. Krämer-Flecken, O. Kudlacek, T. Kurki-Suonio, B. Kurzan, B. Labit, K. Lackner, F. Laggner, P.T. Lang, P. Lauber, A. Lebschy, N. Leuthold, M. Li, O. Linder, B. Lipschultz, F. Liu, Y. Liu, A. Lohs, Z. Lu, T. Luda di Cortemiglia, N.C. Luhmann, R. Lunsford, T. Lunt, A. Lyssoivan, T. Maceina, J. Madsen, R. Maggiora, H. Maier, O. Maj, J. Mailloux, R. Maingi, E. Maljaars, P. Manas, A. Mancini, A. Manhard, M.-E. Manso, P. Mantica, M. Mantsinen, P. Manz, M. Maraschek, C. Martens, P. Martin, L. Marrelli, A. Martitsch, M. Mayer, D. Mazon, P.J. McCarthy, R. McDermott, H. Meister, A. Medvedeva, R. Merkel, A. Merle, V. Mertens, D. Meshcheriakov, O. Meyer, J. Miettunen, D. Milanesio, F. Mink, A. Mlynek, F. Monaco, C. Moon, F. Nabais, A. Nemes-Czopf, G. Neu, R. Neu, A.H. Nielsen, S.K. Nielsen, V. Nikolaeva, M. Nocente, J.-M. Noterdaeme, I. Novikau, S. Nowak, M. Oberkofler, M. Oberparleiter, R. Ochoukov, T. Odstrcil, J. Olsen, F. Orain, F. Palermo, O. Pan, G. Papp, I. Paradela Perez, A. Pau, G. Pautasso, F. Penzel, P. Petersson, J. Pinzón Acosta, P. Piovesan, C. Piron, R. Pitts, U. Plank, B. Plaum, B. Ploeckl, V. Plyusnin, G. Pokol, E. Poli, L. Porte, S. Potzel, D. Prisiazhniuk, T. Pütterich, M. Ramisch, J. Rasmussen, G.A. Rattá, S. Ratynskaia, G. Raupp, G.L. Ravera, D. Réfy, M. Reich, F. Reimold, D. Reiser, T. Ribeiro, J. Riesch, R. Riedl, D. Rittich, J.F. Rivero-Rodriguez, G. Rocchi, M. Rodriguez-Ramos, V. Rohde, A. Ross1, M. Rott, M. Rubel, D. Ryan, F. Ryter, S. Saarelma, M. Salewski, A. Salmi, L. Sanchis-Sanchez, J. Santos, O. Sauter, A. Scarabosio, G. Schall, K. Schmid, O. Schmitz, P.A. Schneider, R. Schrittwieser, M. Schubert, T. Schwarz-Selinger, J. Schweinzer, B. Scott, T. Semer, E. Seliunin, M. Sertoli, A. Shabbir, A. Shalpegin, L. Shao, S. Sharapov, G. Sias, M. Siccinio, B. Sieglin, A. Sigalov, A. Silva, C. Silva, D. Silvagni, P. Simon, J. Simpson, E. Smigelskis, A. Snicker, C. Sommariva, C. Sozzi, M. Spolaore, A. Stegmeir, M. Stejner, J. Stober, U. Stroth, E. Strumberger, G. Suarez, H.-J. Sun, W. Suttrop, E. Sytova, T. Szepesi, B. Tál, T. Tala, G. Tardini, M. Tardocchi, M. Teschke, D. Terranova, W. Tierens, E. Thorén, D. Told, P. Tolias, O. Tudisco, W. Treutterer, E. Trier, M. Tripský, M. Valisa, M. Valovic, B. Vanovac, D. van Vugt, S. Varoutis, G. Verdoolaege, N. Vianello, J. Vicente, T. Vierle, E. Viezzer, U. von Toussaint, D. Wagner, N. Wang, X. Wang, M. Weiland, A.E. White, S. Wiesen, M. Willensdorfer, B. Wiringer, M. Wischmeier, R. Wolf, E. Wolfrum, L. Xiang, Q. Yang, Z. Yang, Q. Yu, R. Zagórski, I. Zammuto, W. Zhang, M. van Zeeland, T. Zehetbauer, M. Zilker, S. Zoletnik, H. Zohm and the EUROfusion MST1 Team55

Discharges produced and sustained by ion cyclotron range of frequency (ICRF) waves in absence of plasma current will be used on ITER for (ion cyclotron-) wall conditioning (ICWC, eV, ). In this paper, we present the 1D particle-in-cell Monte Carlo collision (PIC-MCC) RFdinity1d for the study the breakdown phase of ICRF discharges, and its dependency on the RF discharge parameters (i) antenna input power P i , (ii) RF frequency f, (iii) shape of the electric field and (iv) the neutral gas pressure . The code traces the motion of both electrons and ions in a narrow bundle of magnetic field lines close to the antenna straps. The charged particles are accelerated in the parallel direction with respect to the magnetic field B T by two electric fields: (i) the vacuum RF field of the ICRF antenna and (ii) the electrostatic field determined by the solution of Poisson's equation. The electron density evolution in simulations follows exponential increase, . The ionization rate varies with increasing electron density as different mechanisms become important. The charged particles are affected solely by the antenna RF field at low electron density ( , ). At higher densities, when the electrostatic field is comparable to the antenna RF field , the ionization frequency reaches the maximum. Plasma oscillations propagating toroidally away from the antenna are observed. The simulated energy distributions of ions and electrons at correspond a power-law Kappa energy distribution. This energy distribution was also observed in NPA measurements at ASDEX Upgrade in ICWC experiments.

The high frequency B-dot (HFB) probe diagnostic on the ASDEX Upgrade tokamak has undergone a considerable upgrade during the 2016 opening of the torus. The probe coverage is now greatly expanded toroidally, as well as radially with the addition of probes on the high field side and the removable manipulator head. A new 2-channel fast digitizer now allows to examine and record radio frequency (RF) wave emissions emanating from the plasma in the ion cyclotron range of frequencies (ICRF). Possible studies that can be achieved now include: a study of core ICRF power absorption efficiency; a study of ion cyclotron emissions from the plasma generated by energetic ions; and study of ICRF wave/plasma turbulence interactions in the scrape-off layer region.

The Heating & Current Drive (H&CD) systems in a DEMOnstration fusion power plant are one of the major energy consumers. Due to its high demand in electrical energy produced in the balance of plant (BoP) the H&CD efficiency optimization is one of the main goals of the DEMO development. The energy consumption of the H&CD sub-systems in different plant modes & states and plasma phases need to be strongly considered for the DEMO conceptual design. The H&CD power for DEMO, based on physics scenarios for the plasma phases, is needed for plasma breakdown, plasma initiation, heating to H-mode, burn control, controlled current ramp-up and -down, MHD control and other functions. Plasma control will need significant installed HCD power, though not continuously used. Previously, in the DEMO baseline definition, optimistic forecasted H&CD efficiencies had been assumed in the corresponding system code (i.e. PROCESS) module. Realizing that there is a high uncertainty in the assumptions, hence to move closer to a mature design, it is proposed to use more realistic state-of-the-art efficiencies. These will continuously be updated based on new findings. Those designs must have achieved a minimum Technical Readiness Level (TRL) either by evidence and validation in the laboratory or preferably by being tested in a relevant environment. This presentation discusses the transition from previous to present assumptions and the impact on the DEMO power plant and basic tokamak configuration. A comparison of the various HCD systems NBI (Neutral Beam Injection), Electron Cyclotron (EC), Ion Cyclotron (IC) in terms of impact on Tritium Breeding Ratio (TBR) due to various openings for the H&CD in the breeding blanket (BB) is presented. For increasing the reliability as major features the power per system unit and the redundancy are identified leading to a new proposal for clusters for EC and modular ion-sources for NB.

Plasma heating with waves in the ion cyclotron range of frequency (ICRF) affects the edge plasma and the edge plasma affects the ICRF heating. In simulations, these nonlinear ICRF?edge plasma interactions have been self-consistently simulated by running the EMC3-EIRENE, RAPLICASOL and SSWICH codes in an iterative way on ASDEX Upgrade for the first time. In experiments, the edge plasma convection induced by powered 3-strap antennas is measured with the antenna embedded reflectometers for the first time. Both the simulation and experimental results indicate that the ICRF induced convective cells are most significant on the top and bottom of the antennas; the edge plasma convection induced by 3-strap antennas in optimized antenna feeding configuration (dipole phasing, power ratio between the center and outer straps ~1.5) is smallest among the studied cases. The simulation results also suggest that compared to the 2-strap antennas, the 3-strap antennas can significantly reduce the plasma convection associated with the radio-frequency sheaths, even with unfavorable power balance between the straps in dipole phasing.

In this paper we use the SSWICH-SW software to calculate the (nonlinear) plasma potential near the ASDEX Upgrade 3-strap antenna for various operating parameters, and compare it with the (linear) parallel electric field strength and the (linear) RF potential. It is believed that the plasma potential is the cause of ion sputtering and additional heat loads on the antenna, and that the parallel electric field strength (as calculated by linear codes without sheath boundary conditions) is a good proxy for the plasma potential, and our results confirm the latter.

The RF properties of the four ion cyclotron range of frequencies (ICRF) antennas in the ASDEX Upgrade tokamak are characterized in H-mode magnetically perturbed 3D discharges. An n = 2 magnetic perturbation (MP) field is applied and rigidly rotated, which allows diagnosing the separatrix displacement and consequent coupling change. We find the antenna loading resistance to be coherently modified by the resulting non-axisymmetric plasma equilibria, thus becoming a function of the applied MP field poloidal mode spectra. We perform a detailed statistical analysis, which correlates the change in loading resistance to the fast wave R-cutoff layer movements. From it, a 1D scaling is derived that differs from previous studies evaluated in pure axisymmetric plasma conditions. This experimentally derived scaling is used to predict the average loading resistance change of the ITER ICRF antenna under applied MPs. ICRF coupling simulations using measured 1D density profiles are performed with the RAPLICASOL code, in order to investigate the predictive capabilities of numerical state of the art tools. We find that both 1D conventional scaling laws and 1D numerical simulations fail to capture the 3D physics, and can substantially overestimate the measured loading resistance change up to a factor of ∼3.

A new array of B-dot probes was installed on ASDEX Upgrade. The purpose of the new diagnostic is to study Ion Cyclotron Range-off Frequencies (ICRF) wave field distributions in the evanescent scrape-off layer (SOL) plasma region on the low field side of ASDEX Upgrade. The vacuum measurements (no gas, B-T = 0 T) reveal ICRF wave field measurements consistent with the profiles expected from the newly installed 3-strap ICRF antennas outside the antenna box: the shape of the toroidal distribution of both the amplitude and the phase is the same for the case of only the central straps being active, as for the case of only the side straps being active. These profiles become strongly modified during plasma operations. The modifications can be separated into two types: " Inter-edge localized mode (ELM)" and " During-ELM" periods. The phase distribution of the ICRF wave fields remains well-defined during the Inter-ELM period; however, it becomes more spread out over the entire 360. range during ELMs. The observed modulations cannot be explained by the observed changes in the ICRF power, as monitored in the transmission line. However, they are consistent with ICRF coupling changes introduced by plasma filaments: the plasma density perturbations due to the filaments are high enough to change the nature of the fast ICRF wave field from evanescent to propagating. The coverage of the present diagnostic is being expanded to include both the low field side and the high field side probes. Additionally, a manipulator probe head is being developed to measure ICRF wave field radial profiles across the SOL region. Published by AIP Publishing.

A dimensionless empirical scaling for intrinsic toroidal rotation is given: M-A similar to beta(N)rho*, where M-A is the toroidal velocity divided by the Alfven velocity, beta(N) is the usual normalized beta value, and rho* is the ion gyroradius divided by the minor radius. This scaling describes well experimental data from DIII-D and also some published data from C-Mod and JET. The velocity used in this scaling is in an outer location in minor radius, outside of the interior core and inside of the large gradient edge region in H-mode conditions. This scaling establishes the basic magnitude of the intrinsic toroidal rotation, and its relation to the rich variety of rotation profiles that can be realized for intrinsic conditions is discussed. This scaling has some similarities to existing dimensioned scalings, both the Rice scaling [J. E. Rice et al., Phys. Plasmas 7, 1825 (2000)] and the scaling of Parra et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 108, 095001 (2012)]. These relationships are described. Published by AIP Publishing.

Use of new 3-strap ICRF antennas with all-tungsten (W) limiters in ASDEX Upgrade results in a reduction of the W sources at the antenna limiters and of the W content in the confined plasma by at least a factor of 2 compared to the W-limiter 2-strap antennas used in the past. The reduction is observed with a broad range of plasma shapes. In multiple locations of antenna frame, the limiter W source has a minimum when RF image currents are decreased by cancellation of the RF current contributions of the central and the outer straps. In JET with ITER-like wall, ITER-like antenna produces about 20% less of main chamber radiation and of W content compared to the old A2 antennas. However the effect of the A2 antennas on W content is scattered depending on which antennas are powered. Experiments in JET with trace nitrogen (N-2) injection show that a presence of active ICRF antenna close to the midplane injection valve has little effect on the core N content, both in dipole and in -90 degrees phasing. This indicates that the effect of ICRF on impurity transport across the scape-off-layer is small in JET compared to the dominant effect on impurity sources leading to increased impurity levels during ICRF operation. (C) 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. For complete list of authors see http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.nme.2016.10.026

In magnetic controlled fusion devices, plasma heating with radio-frequency (RF) waves in the ion cyclotron (IC) range of frequency relies on the electric field of the fast wave to heat the plasma. However, the slow wave can be generated parasitically. The electric field of the slow wave can induce large biased plasma potential (DC potential) through sheath rectification. The rapid variation of the rectified potential across the equilibrium magnetic field can cause significant convective transport (E × B drifts) in the scrape-off layer (SOL). In order to understand this phenomenon and reproduce the experiments, 3D realistic simulations are carried out with the 3D edge plasma fluid and kinetic neutral code EMC3-Eirene in ASDEX Upgrade. For this, we have added the prescribed drift terms to the EMC3 equations and verified the 3D code results against the analytical ones in cylindrical geometry. The edge plasma potential derived from the experiments is used to calculate the drift velocities, which are then treated as input fields in the code to obtain the final density distributions. Our simulation results are in good agreement with the experiments.

The 3-strap antennas in ASDEX Upgrade allow ICRF operation with low tungsten (W) content in the confined plasma with W-coated antenna limiters. With the 3-strap antenna configuration, the local W impurity source at the antenna is drastically reduced and the core W concentration is similar to that of the boron coated 2-strap antenna at a given ICRF power. Operation of the 3-strap antennas with the power ratio between the central and the outer straps of 1.5 : 1 and 2 : 1 is adopted to minimize the ICRF-specific W release.

a b s t r a c t Ion Cyclotron Wall Conditioning (ICWC) discharges, in pulsed-mode operation, were carried out in the divertor tokamaks ASDEX Upgrade (AUG) and JET to simulate the scenario of ITER wall conditioning at half-field (AUG) and full-field (JET). ICWC-plasma and antenna coupling characterization results obtained during the Ion Cyclotron Resonance Frequency (ICRF)-Wall Conditioning experiments performed in helium-hydrogen mixture in AUG and helium-deuterium mixtures in JET are presented here. Safe oper- ational regimes for optimum ICWC in ITER could be explored for different magnetic fields. Satisfactory antenna coupling in the Mode Conversion scenario along with reproducible generation of ICRF plas- mas and reliable wall conditioning were achieved by coupling RF power from one or two ICRF antennas at two (AUG, JET) different resonant frequencies. These results are in qualitative agreement with the predictions of 1-D TOMCAT code. Present study of ICWC indicates towards the beneficial effect of appli- cation of an additional (along with toroidal magnetic field) stationary vertical (BVBT) magnetic field on antenna coupling and plasma parameters. The results obtained from JET and AUG tokamaks, presented in this paper, emphasizes the proposed phenomenological schemes for further development of ICWC in superconducting tokamaks.

Analysis of the W concentration during ICRF over AUG experimental campaigns confirms the critical role of W antenna limiters for the W content in plasma, though other structures connected to antennas along magnetic field lines cannot be neglected as W sources. Abrupt changes of spectroscopically measured W sputtering patterns are observed which correlate with step-wise changes of connection lengths at antenna limiters. Analysis of discharges with the reversed direction of toroidal magnetic field shows less W release compared to identical discharges with the normal direction. The lower W release is accompanied by lower intensity of fluctuations of reflected ICRF power in the 1–60 kHz range. The observations suggest that local magnetic geometry and density convection at the antennas are at least as important for the W sputtering as the distribution of RF near-fields at the antenna. Measurements of DC currents flowing through the antenna limiters show that the limiters at the active antenna collect predominantly negative DC currents whereas those distant from the active antenna collect predominantly positive DC currents. The latter decrease and become more negative when the intensity of the RF pickup measured at the limiters increases. The mutual compensation between the positive and negative currents can lead to lower values of the DC current than those expected from simplified theoretical models of the RF/DC circuit.

This paper focuses on a study of the principal operation aspects of standard ICRF heating antennas in the ion cyclotron wall conditioning (ICWC) mode: (i) ability of the antenna to ignite the cleaning discharge safely and reliably in different gases including those most likely to be used in ITER – He, H 2 , D 2 and their mixtures, (ii) the antenna capacity to couple a large fraction of the RF generator power (>50%) to low density (∼10 16 –10 18 m −3 ) plasmas and (iii) the RF power absorption schemes aimed at improved RF plasma homogeneity and enhanced conditioning effect. The ICWC discharge optimization in terms of RF plasma wave excitation/absorption resulted in successful simulation of the conditioning scenarios for ITER operation at full field (JET) and half-field (TEXTOR, TORE SUPRA, ASDEX Upgrade).

In the present paper, inter-machine studies of Ion Cyclotron Wall Conditioning (ICWC) have been performed in limiter (TEXTOR) and divertor (ASDEX Upgrade, AUG) tokamaks in the presence of toroidal (0.2–2.35 T) and vertical (0–0.04 T) magnetic fields using the conventional ICRF antennas without modifications in hardware. The ICWC effect on both machines was studied by analyzing the removal rate of marker gases which have been loaded to the walls by glow discharge beforehand. Several factors were identified which could have a crucial impact on the conditioning efficiency: (i) RF power coupled to the plasmas; (ii) RF power absorption scheme; (iii) superimposing an additional vertical magnetic field on the toroidal field ( B V B T ). All the observed effects are analyzed in terms of RF plasma wave excitation/absorption and compared with the predictions from 1-D RF and 0-D transport codes. ICWC scenarios for ITER are proposed and analyzed.

The coupling of electromagnetic waves in the Ion Cyclotron Range of Frequencies (ICRF) is an important method to heat magnetically confined plasmas. Changing plasma conditions, which originate from processes like L-mode to H-mode transition or gas puffing, vary the load impedance of the ICRF antennas. To optimize the power transfer from the radio frequency (RF) generators to the antennas and consequently to the plasma, as well as to protect the RF sources against too high reflected power, a system that matches (i.e. transforms) the antenna input impedance to the impedance required by the generator is necessary. At ASDEX Upgrade this matching system consists of two stub tuners for each antenna, which match the antenna impedance for a value preset before the discharge. The length of the stubs cannot be changed fast enough to compensate plasma variations even on the moderate timescale of the confinement time in ASDEX Upgrade. The use of 3 dB-couplers allows operation even with varying load, at the cost of a reduced power to the plasma. When adjustable capacitors are applied in parallel to the stubs, dynamic matching becomes possible on the tens of ms timescale. The paper describes first the calculation of the required capacitance using transmission line theory. In a second model a minimum search algorithm finds, for a given antenna impedance, the length of the stubs needed for matching, now including the initial values of the capacitors. For the chosen pre-match point in the Smith chart, the range of impedances around this point is calculated for which the voltage standing wave ratio (VSWR) can be lowered below a minimum value by readjusting the capacitors within their maximum and minimum values. The matching range is thereby significantly larger than without the application of adjustable capacitors, at least with a frequency of 30 MHz and 36.5 MHz.

High-Z materials are considered the best candidates for plasma facing components (PFCs) in future fusion devices, while ion cyclotron range of frequencies (ICRF) heating is a method of choice because of its flexibility, cost effectiveness, and plug-to-power efficiency. But high-Z materials and ICRF have been a difficult combination. ASDEX Upgrade (AUG) is pioneering the use of a tungsten (W) wall and in the next years it will prove (or disprove) the appropriateness of this combination for the future. This paper describes the optimization procedure for and the main features of a new proposed ICRF antenna for AUG specifically designed to improve the compatibility of ICRF with a high-Z metallic wall. The optimization criteria for a new design are based on a reduction of the parasitic parallel electric field responsible of the impurity production. The evolutionary design of the 2-strap antenna is compared with a redesigned 4-strap antenna embedded in the wall. Moreover, options and constraints on how to integrate a wider antenna in the present configuration of ASDEX Upgrade and its integration on the stabilizing wall are discussed.

The ion cyclotron resonance frequency (ICRF) heating system on JET is currently being upgraded to validate new matching concepts in view of coupling ICRF power to ITER-like plasmas and to further increase the total additional heating power on JET. The present paper reports on first testbed results from the new JET ITER-like antenna as well as on the first use of the newly installed hybrid couplers between two of the existing A2 antennas. Several other on-going improvements, such as improved trip management system, external conjugate-T matching circuit and arc detection systems are also discussed.

Since 2005/2006 all side limiters of ICRF antennas in ASDEX Upgrade are W-coated. Comparison of two plasma shapes with high and low triangularity δ shows that the high δ shape leads to the appearance of an intensified antenna–plasma interaction and to a significantly stronger W sputtering. In particular, for (0 π/2) antenna phasing W fluxes as high as 3 × 1019 m−2 s−1 were measured, a factor of 10 higher than W fluxes for dipole phasing while the difference between the phasings for the low δ discharges is small. Considering general evolution of local W fluxes and sputtering yields at the limiters, it takes ≈20 shots after boronization to increase W yields at the antenna limiters by a factor of 100. More than 100 shots pass until the yields at the limiters far from the antennas reach the same values as at the antenna limiters. W influxes and yields between ELMs show a dependence on RF power close to linear. In H-modes W yields can increase during ELMs by more than a factor of three.

This chapter reviews the progress accomplished since the redaction of the first ITER Physics Basis (1999 Nucl. Fusion 39 2137-664) in the field of energetic ion physics and its possible impact on burning plasma regimes. New schemes to create energetic ions simulating the fusion-produced alphas are introduced, accessing experimental conditions of direct relevance for burning plasmas, in terms of the Alfvénic Mach number and of the normalised pressure gradient of the energetic ions, though orbit characteristics and size cannot always match those of ITER. Based on the experimental and theoretical knowledge of the effects of the toroidal magnetic field ripple on direct fast ion losses, ferritic inserts in ITER are expected to provide a significant reduction of ripple alpha losses in reversed shear configurations. The nonlinear fast ion interaction with kink and tearing modes is qualitatively understood, but quantitative predictions are missing, particularly for the stabilisation of sawteeth by fast particles that can trigger neoclassical tearing modes. A large database on the linear stability properties of the modes interacting with energetic ions, such as the Alfvén eigenmode has been constructed. Comparisons between theoretical predictions and experimental measurements of mode structures and drive/damping rates approach a satisfactory degree of consistency, though systematic measurements and theory comparisons of damping and drive of intermediate and high mode numbers, the most relevant for ITER, still need to be performed. The nonlinear behaviour of Alfvén eigenmodes close to marginal stability is well characterized theoretically and experimentally, which gives the opportunity to extract some information on the particle phase space distribution from the measured instability spectral features. Much less data exists for strongly unstable scenarios, characterised by nonlinear dynamical processes leading to energetic ion redistribution and losses, and identified in nonlinear numerical simulations of Alfvén eigenmodes and energetic particle modes. Comparisons with theoretical and numerical analyses are needed to assess the potential implications of these regimes on burning plasma scenarios, including in the presence of a large number of modes simultaneously driven unstable by the fast ions. © 2007 IAEA, Vienna.

Inter-machine studies of wall conditioning with the ICRF discharges have been performed in the limiter (TEXTOR) and divertor (ASDEX Upgrade (AUG)) tokamaks in the presence of a toroidal magnetic field (⩾2 T) using the conventional ICRF antennas without modifications in hardware. The vessel oxidation treatment by pulsed ICRF discharges in (He + O 2 )-mixture (TEXTOR) is analyzed in terms of ratios of the RF pulse length to the O 2 -puff duration. A successive set of deuterium and helium ICRF discharges was developed for post-oxidation wall cleaning and analyzed in the light of TEXTOR recovery to the normal plasma operation. A new scenario of ICRF wall conditioning in (He + H 2 )-mixture at two frequencies was applied in AUG and compared with the standard glow discharge in terms of outgassing efficiency. Modeling of the absorbed RF power was done to clear up a role of the H 2 concentration in the homogeneity of ICRF plasmas and the generation of high-energy ions.

Recent experiments in ASDEX Upgrade aimed at improving the physics base for ITER and DEMO to aid the design and prepare operation. In order to increase its exhaust capabilities and operational flexibility a new bulk W divertor as well as an adjustable cryo-pump had been installed prior to the 2014 campaign. In experiments with high field side pellet injection central electron densities twice as high as the Greenwald density limit could be achieved without strongly increasing the pedestal density and deleterious effect on confinement. Due to its large installed heating power a large normalized heat flux Psep/R=10 MWm−1 has been reached, representing 2/3 of the ITER value, under partially detached conditions with a peak target heat flux well below 10 MWm−2. The divertor load could be further reduced by increasing the core radiation still keeping the confinement in the range of H98y≈1. ELM suppression at low collisionality has been observed in a narrow spectral window in contrast to earlier results at high densities. The ITER Q=10 baseline scenario has been investigated, matching as close as possible the triangularity, the plasma beta, q95 and the distance the L-H threshold. It turned out that the ELMs frequency is low and consequently the energy ejected by a single ELM is very high and ELM mitigation appears to be difficult. As a possible alternative an improved H-Mode scenario has been developed achieving a similar performance at lower plasma current (and consequently higher q95). Experiments using ECCD with feedback controlled deposition have allowed successfully testing several control strategies for ITER, including automated control of (3,2) and (2,1) NTMs during a single discharge. Concerning advanced scenarios, experiments with central ctr-ECCD have been performed in order to modify the q-profile. A strong reversal of the q-profile could be stationary achieved and an internal transport barrier could be triggered. In disruption mitigation studies with massive gas injection (MGI) a runaway electron beam could be provoked and mitigated by a second MGI. Ongoing enhancements aim at the strengthening of the power supplies in order to allow full use of the installed heating power, the exchange of two ICRH antennas to reduce the W influx during ICRH and the upgrading of the ECRH system to 7–8 MW for 10s.

Simulations were carried out with the 3D plasma transport code EMC3-EIRENE, to study the deuterium gas (D2) puff effects on edge density and the coupling of Ion Cyclotron Range of Frequency (ICRF) power in ASDEX Upgrade. Firstly we simulated an inter-ELM phase of an H-mode discharge with a moderate (1.2 × 1022 electrons/s) lower divertor gas puff. Then we changed the gas source positions to the mid-plane or top of machine while keeping other conditions the same. Cases with different mid-plane or top gas valves are investigated. Our simulations indicate that compared to lower divertor gas puffing, the mid-plane gas puff can enhance the local density in front of the antennas most effectively, while a rather global (toroidally uniform) but significantly smaller enhancement is found for top gas puffing. Our results show quantitative agreement with the experiments.

The paper reports results of MCNP-5 calculations to assess the effect on the Tritium Breeding Ratio (TBR) when integrating a distributed Ion Cyclotron Range of Frequencies (ICRF) antenna in the blanket of DEMO fusion power reactor. The calculations consider different parameters such as the ICRF covering ratio and the type of breeding blanket including the Helium Cooled Pebble Bed (HCPB) and the Helium Cooled Lithium Lead (HCLL) concepts. For an antenna with a full toroidal circumference of 360°, located poloidally at 40° with a poloidal extension of 1 m, the reduction of the TBR is −0.349% for the HCPB blanket and −0.532% for the HCLL blanket. The distributed ICRF antenna is thus shown to have only a marginal effect on the TBR of the DEMO reactor.

A new B-dot probe-based diagnostic has been installed on an ASDEX Upgrade tokamak to characterize ion cyclotron range-of frequency (ICRF) wave generation and interaction with magnetized plasma. The diagnostic consists of a field-aligned array of B-dot probes, oriented to measure fast and slow ICRF wave fields and their field-aligned wavenumber (k(//)) spectrum on the low field side of ASDEX Upgrade. A thorough description of the diagnostic and the supporting electronics is provided. In order to compare the measured dominant wavenumber of the local ICRF fields with the expected spectrum of the launched ICRF waves, in-air near-field measurements were performed on the newly installed 3-strap ICRF antenna to reconstruct the dominant launched toroidal wavenumbers (k(tor)). Measurements during a strap current phasing scan in tokamak discharges reveal an upshift in k(//) as strap phasing is moved away from the dipole configuration. This result is the opposite of the k(tor) trend expected from in-air near-field measurements; however, the near-field based reconstruction routine does not account for the effect of induced radiofrequency (RF) currents in the passive antenna structures. The measured exponential increase in the local ICRF wave field amplitude is in agreement with the upshifted k(//), as strap phasing moves away from the dipole configuration. An examination of discharges heated with two ICRF antennas simultaneously reveals the existence of beat waves at 1 kHz, as expected from the difference of the two antennas' operating frequencies. Beats are observed on both the fast and the slow wave probes suggesting that the two waves are coupled outside the active antennas. Although the new diagnostic shows consistent trends between the amplitude and the phase measurements in response to changes applied by the ICRF antennas, the disagreement with the in-air near-field measurements remains. An electromagnetic model is currently under development to address this issue. (C) 2015 AIP Publishing LLC.

Recent experiments on the ASDEX Upgrade tokamak aim at improving the physics base for ITER and DEMO to aid the machine design and prepare efficient operation. Type I edge localized mode (ELM) mitigation using resonant magnetic perturbations (RMPs) has been shown at low pedestal collisionality ( ν ∗ ped < 0 . 4 ) . In contrast to the previous high ν ∗ regime, suppression only occurs in a narrow RMP spectral window, indicating a resonant process, and a concomitant confinement drop is observed due to a reduction of pedestal top density and electron temperature. Strong evidence is found for the ion heat flux to be the decisive element for the L–H power threshold. A physics based scaling of the density at which the minimum P LH occurs indicates that ITER could take advantage of it to initiate H-mode at lower density than that of the final Q = 10 operational point. Core density fluctuation measurements resolved in radius and wave number show that an increase of R/L T e introduced by off-axis electron cyclotron resonance heating (ECRH) mainly increases the large scale fluctuations. The radial variation of the fluctuation level is in agreement with simulations using the GENE code. Fast particles are shown to undergo classical slowing down in the absence of large scale magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) events and for low heating power, but show signs of anomalous radial redistribution at large heating power, consistent with a broadened off-axis neutral beam current drive current profile under these conditions. Neoclassical tearing mode (NTM) suppression experiments using electron cyclotron current drive (ECCD) with feedback controlled deposition have allowed to test several control strategies for ITER, including automated control of (3,2) and (2,1) NTMs during a single discharge. Disruption mitigation studies using massive gas injection (MGI) can show an increased fuelling efficiency with high field side injection, but a saturation of the fuelling efficiency is observed at high injected mass as needed for runaway electron suppression. Large locked modes can significantly decrease the fuelling efficiency and increase the asymmetry of radiated power during MGI mitigation. Concerning power exhaust, the partially detached ITER divertor scenario has been demonstrated at P sep /R = 10 MW m − 1 in ASDEX Upgrade, with a peak time averaged target load around 5MWm − 2 , well consistent with the component limits for ITER. Developing this towards DEMO, full detachment was achieved at P sep /R = 7MWm − 1 and stationary discharges with core radiation fraction of the order of DEMO requirements (70% instead of the 30% needed for ITER) were demonstrated. Finally, it remains difficult to establish the standard ITER Q = 10 scenario at low q 95 = 3 in the all-tungsten (all-W) ASDEX Upgrade due to the observed poor confinement at low β N . This is mainly due to a degraded pedestal performance and hence investigations at shifting the operational point to higher β N by lowering the current have been started. At higher q 95 , pedestal performance can be recovered by seeding N 2 as well as CD 4 , which is interpreted as improved pedestal stability due to the decrease of bootstrap current with increasing Z eff . Concerning advanced scenarios, the upgrade of ECRH power has allowed experiments with central ctr-ECCD to modify the q -profile in improved H-mode scenarios, showing an increase in confinement at still good MHD stability with flat elevated q -profiles at values between 1.5 and 2. European Commission (EUROfusion 633053)

Under the umbrella of the EUROfusion Consortium and within the Power Plant Physics and Technology (PPPT) Conceptual Design Activities, the project Heating and Current Drive (HC (ii) Neutral beam (NB) injector investigations with gas or alternatively photo-neutralization in the range of 25 – 35 MW as a modular 1 MeV injector type with reduced Cs consumption sources or alternatively volume-production based non-Cs sources; (iii) Ion Cyclotron (IC) antenna conceptual design for a distributed antenna, representing a new type of design and a transition from the commonly used port plugged antennas.

IShTAR (Ion cyclotron Sheath Test ARrangement) is a linear magnetized plasma test facility dedicated to the investigation of RF wave/plasma interaction [1] in the Ion Cyclotron Range of Frequencies (ICRF). It provides a better accessibility for the instrumentation than tokamaks while being representative of the neighboring region of the wave emitter. It is equipped with a magnetized plasma source (1 m long, 0.4 m diameter) powered by a helical antenna up to 3 kW at 11 MHz. We present the results of the first analysis of the plasma characteristics (plasma density, electron temperature) in function of the operating parameters (injected power, neutral pressure and magnetic field) as measured with fixed and movable Langmuir probes, spectrometer and cameras. The plasma is presently produced only by the helical antenna (no ICRF). We show that the plasma exists in three regime depending on the power level: the first two ones are stable and separated by a jump in density; a first spatial profile of the plasma density has been established for these modes; The third mode is unstable, characterized by strong oscillations of the plasma tube position.

Discharges produced and sustained by ion cyclotron range of frequency (ICRF) waves in absence of plasma current will be used on ITER for (ion cyclotron-) wall conditioning (ICWC). The here presented simulations aim at ensuring that the ITER ICRH& CD system can be safely employed for ICWC and at finding optimal parameters to initiate the plasma. The 1D Monte Carlo code RFdinity1D3V was developed to simulate ICRF discharge initiation. The code traces the electron motion along one toroidal magnetic field line, accelerated by the RF field in front of the ICRF antenna. Electron collisions in the calculations are handled by a Monte Carlo procedure taking into account their energies and the related electron collision cross sections for collisions with H-2, H-2(+) and H+. The code also includes Coulomb collisions between electrons and ions (e - e; e - H-2(+); e - H+). We study the electron multiplication rate as a function of the RF discharge parameters (i) antenna input power (0.1-5MW), and (ii) the neutral pressure (H-2) for two antenna phasing (monopole [0000]-phasing and small dipole [0 pi 0 pi]-phasing). Furthermore, we investigate the electron multiplication rate dependency on the distance from the antenna straps. This radial dependency results from the decreasing electric amplitude and field smoothening with increasing distance from the antenna straps. The numerical plasma breakdown definition used in the code corresponds to the moment when a critical electron density nec for the low hybrid resonance (omega = omega(LHR)) is reached. This numerical definition was previously found in qualitative agreement with experimental breakdown times obtained from the literature and from experiments on the ASDEX Upgrade and TEXTOR.

Fast protons can react with tritons in an endothermic nuclear reaction which can act as a source of neutrons in magnetically confined fusion plasmas. We have performed an experiment to systematically study this reaction in low tritium concentration (approximate to 1%) plasmas in the Joint European Torus. A linear dependence is found between excess neutron rate and tritium concentration when the DT fusion rate is low. We discuss the properties of the neutron emission, including anisotropy, from the proton-triton reaction in a fusion reactor environment and derive simple models for the calculation of the neutron yield from this reaction in terms of tritium density, fast ion temperature and fast ion energy content.