Investigation of phase modulation and propagation-route effect from unmatched large-scale structures for Doppler reflectometry measurement through 2D full-wave modeling

To interpret the common symmetric peaks caused by the large-scale structure in the complex S(f) spectrum from the heterodyne Doppler reflectometry(DR) measurement in EAST, a 2D circular-shaped O-mode full-wave model based on the finite-difference time-domain method is built. The scattering characteristics and the influences on the DR signal from various scales are investigated. When the structure is located around the cutoff layer, a moving radial or poloidal large-scale structure k_θ■...     

Observation of Pedestal Plasma Turbulence on EAST Tokamak

Pedestal plasma turbulence was experimentally studied by microwave reflectometry on EAST tokamak. The characteristics of edge pedestal turbulence during dithering L-H transition, ELM-free H-mode phase and inter-ELM phase have recently been studied on EAST. An edge spatial structure of density fluctuation and its dithering temporal evolution is observed for the first time on the EAST tokamak during the L-H transition phase. A coherent mode usually appears during the ELM-free phase prior to the first ELM on EAST tokamak. The mode frequency gradually decreases as the pedestal evolves. Analysis shows that the coherent mode is in the pedestal region inside the separatrix. In plasma with type-III ELMs, a precursor mode before ELM is usually observed. The frequency of the precursor was initially about 150 kHz and gradually decreased till the next ELM. The mode amplitude increases or shows saturation before ELM. In the plasma with compound ELMs composed of high and low frequency ELMs, the precursor was also observed before the high frequency ELM while the harmonic oscillations with frequencies of 20 kHz, 40 kHz and 60 kHz appear before the low frequency ELM.     

Design and platform testing of the compact torus central fueling device for the EAST tokamak

Compact torus(CT) injection is a highly promising technique for the central fueling of future reactor-grade fusion devices since it features extremely high injection velocity and relatively high plasma mass. Recently, a CT injector for the EAST tokamak, EAST-CTI, was developed and platform-tested. In the first round of experiments conducted with low parameter settings, the maximum velocity and mass of the CT plasma were 150 km·s^-1 and 90 μg, respectively.However, the parameters obtain...     

Spontaneous current relaxation in NBI heated plasmas on EAST

We report on current profile evolution in EAST NBI driven plasmas where two neutral beams are injected,one during the current ramp phase and the second during flattop.At the end of the current ramp phase,it is found that a flat q profile with q0?~?1 is achieved with low magnetic shear in the core.It is observed that plasma current and density both relax much faster than resistive time,even in the absence of sawtooth activity when H–L transition occurs.Density fluctuations associated with magnetic perturbations(3/2) as a precursor to the H–L transition are observed.It is likely that these modes play a role in fast current transport.     

Experimental Determination of the ICRF Power Depositing on the Electrons in HT-7

This paper reports for the first time an experimental study on the power deposition profile of the ion cyclotron range frequencies （ICRF） power depositing on electrons in HT-7. The fast Fourier transform （FFT） analysis and the break in slope （BIS） method are utilized to obtain the information of the power deposition. The results indicate that the electrons were heated directly, and the electrons absorbed around 20% of the input power of the discharge of interest.     

Experimental study of double tearing mode on EAST tokamak

The double tearing mode(DTM)in a high βN(βN>1.5)discharge with internal transport barrier on EAST was investigated.A 15 kHz tearing mode(TM)(m≥3,n=3)appears at outer q=2 surface at first,which is stable in the highβN phase.Then a 2 kHz TM(m=2,n=1)occurs at inner q=2 surface.Soon after,high βN collapsed with the crash of ELM,and DTM formed during the collapse of βN.The positions of the two islands of the DTM are consistent with the q=2 surface.The temperature fluctuations are the strongest between the two magnetic islands.A statistical analysis of high βN discharges operating with the reversed magnetic shear configuration in the EAST 2015-2018 campaign revealed the existence of the DTM in many discharges.During the DTM phase,all βN are reduced by 10%-30% within 0.1 s.However,there are two different βN behaviors thereafter-with and without βN recovery.Studying the physical mechanism of βN recovery during the DTM phase will benefit steady-state operation with reversed shear configurations in the future.     

Magnetohydrodynamic effect of internal transport barrier on EAST tokamak

An internal transport barrier (ITB) can be formed on EAST in exploring high-parameter operation. Previous studies show that safety factor (q) profiles, Shafranov shift and magnetohydrodynamic behaviors could be helpful in ITB formation by suppressing anomalous transport. Recently, electron density evolution with high resolution demonstrates that fishbone could be dominant in electron density ITB formation and sustainment. The power threshold is low in the fishbone condition and the electron density profile is determined by traits of fishbone. Simulation shows that the low-k ion mode is suppressed by fishbone. Direct measurement of turbulence in the inner region shows that the internal kink mode could sustain an electron temperature ITB by suppressing the trapped electron mode. The multi-scale interaction between the kink mode and turbulence by current could be key in sustaining high-electron-temperature long-pulse operation.