Plasma diagnostic systems and methods used on the stellarator TJ-II

The TJ-II is a heliac-type stellarator device with major radius of 1.5 m and averaged minor radius ⩽0.22 m that has been operated at CIEMAT, Madrid since 1998. Its full magnetic field is created by a system of poloidal, central, toroidal and vertical field coils, thus it possesses a fully 3-dimensional plasma structure and a bean-shaped plasma cross-section. Although this results in a complicated vacuum-vessel layout, it has excellent port access for diagnostics (96 portholes). During its initial operational phase, it was equipped with a limited set of essential diagnostics. Since then, a broad variety and large number of both passive and active diagnostics have been installed. The former include Hα monitors, light spectrometers, an electron cyclotron emission radiometer, X-ray filter monitors, neutral particle analysers, magnetic diagnostics, as well as cameras, among others, while the latter include various laser, atomic and ion beam based diagnostics, microwave probe beams, Langmuir probes plus impurity injection techniques. In this paper, after describing the TJ-II stellarator, its heating and fuelling systems, the diagnostic systems employed are outlined and discussed briefly here. Finally, results obtained with selected systems are highlighted.

Novel internal measurements of ion cyclotron frequency range fast-ion driven modes

Novel internal measurements and analysis of ion cyclotron frequency range fast-ion driven modes in DIII-D are presented. Observations, including internal density fluctuation (ñ) measurements obtained via Doppler Backscattering, are presented for modes at low harmonics of the ion cyclotron frequency localized in the edge. The measurements indicate that these waves, identified as coherent Ion Cyclotron Emission (ICE), have high wave number, _⊥ρ_fast ≳ 1, consistent with the cyclotron harmonic wave branch of the magnetoacoustic cyclotron instability (MCI), or electrostatic instability mechanisms. Measurements show extended spatial structure (at least ~ 1/6 the minor radius). These edge ICE modes undergo amplitude modulation correlated with edge localized modes (ELM) that is qualitatively consistent with expectations for ELM-induced fast-ion transport.