Study of Three Different Types of Plasma Ion Sources

Three types of plasma ion sources designed, manufactured and optimized in the Accelerators and Ion Sources Department, Nuclear Research Center, Atomic Energy Authority are introduced. Different means were investigated to generate the discharge current and ion beam current extracted from the plasma. The various plasmas described include a DC glow discharge plasma, an arc discharge plasma and a radio frequency discharge plasma.

Energy properties and spatial plume profile of ionic liquid ion sources based on an array of porous metal strips

An ionic liquid ion source(ILIS)is a kind of high brightness ion source capable of providing high-speed positive or negative ion beams.This paper presents a miniaturized ILIS based on an array of porous metal strips.The porous emitter array,integrated with seven 10 mm long strips,is fabricated using wire electrical discharge machining(WEDM)combined with electrochemical etching.The assembled ILIS is 30 mm×30 mm×17.5 mm in size and weighs less than 25 g.A series of experiments,including anⅠ-Ⅴcharacteristic test,a retarding potential analyzer(RPA)test,and a spatial plume distribution test,have been conducted in vacuo to characterize the performance of the ILIS.Results show that the emitted current is up to about 800μA and ion transparency is as high as 94%.Besides,RPA curves reveal that the total fragmentation rate of the emitted particles accounts for 48.8%in positive mode and 59.8%in negative mode.Further,with the increase in applied acceleration voltage,the voltage loss rises while the energy efficiency decreases.It is also found that the plume perpendicular to the strips has a higher divergence than the one parallel to the strips.A numerical simulation by COMSOL reveals that the electric field distribution between the two electrodes results in such a spatial plume profile.

Synchronous Output Control System of Two Megawatt Hot Cathode Bucket Ion Sources for NBI

Synchronous output of one beam line＇s two megawatt hot cathode bucket ion sources is required when Neutral Beam Injector （NBI） works on the Experimental Advanced Supercon- ducting Tokamak （EAST）. Neutral Beam Injector Control System （NBICS） realizes synchronous output and asynchronous output of two ion sources with network communication and hardware triggers. And the synchronous time can be set by operator. In synchronous mode, two megawatt hot cathode bucket ion sources can produce neutral beams at any relative time with higher energy than two sources＇ asynchronous output. Two megawatt hot cathode bucket ion sources＇ synchronous output makes an important contribution to NBI system of 4-8 MW with 10-100 s pulse length and provides more and better parameters for EAST physical experiments.

Numerical investigation of radio-frequency negative hydrogen ion sources by a three-dimensional fluid model

A three-dimensional fluid model is developed to investigate the radio-frequency inductively coupled H2 plasma in a reactor with a rectangular expansion chamber and a cylindrical driver chamber,for neutral beam injection system in CFETR.In this model,the electron effective collision frequency and the ion mobility at high E-fields are employed,for accurate simulation of discharges at low pressures(0.3 Pa-2 Pa)and high powers(40 kW-100 kW).The results indicate that when the high E-field ion mobility is taken into account,the electron density is about four times higher than the value in the low E-field case.In addition,the influences of the magnetic field,pressure and power on the electron density and electron temperature are demonstrated.It is found that the electron density and electron temperature in the xz-plane along permanent magnet side become much more asymmetric when magnetic field enhances.However,the plasma parameters in the yz-plane without permanent magnet side are symmetric no matter the magnetic field is applied or not.Besides,the maximum of the electron density first increases and then decreases with magnetic field,while the electron temperature at the bottom of the expansion region first decreases and then almost keeps constant.As the pressure increases from 0.3 Pa to 2 Pa,the electron density becomes higher,with the maximum moving upwards to the driver region,and the symmetry of the electron temperature in the xz-plane becomes much better.As power increases,the electron density rises,whereas the spatial distribution is similar.It can be summarized that the magnetic field and gas pressure have great influence on the symmetry of the plasma parameters,while the power only has little effect.

Three-dimensional PIC/MCC simulation of electron deposition in JAEA 10 A ion sources

A systematic research on the electron deposition process in the JAEA 10 A ion source is carried out by using a particle-in-cell/Monte Carlo collision simulation, which is based on a full three-dimensional self-developed code. Two parts are studied. One is the space and energy distribution of fast and slow electrons, the other is the vibration excitation collisions between electrons and hydrogen moleculars. The results show that the inhomogeneity of electrons comes from the Y direction drift of the fast electrons （Te ≥25 eV） due to the action of the magnetic fields. This drift also increases the number of vibration excitation collisions in the -Y direction, and results in the increase of Ha in the -Y direction, eventually leading to the -Y drift of H^-. It explains the spatial non-uniformity in the JAEA 10 A ion source.

Experimental results of a magnetic field modification to the radio frequency driver of a negative ion source

A magnetic field produced by a current flowing through the plasma grid(PG) is one of the solutions to reduce the collisional loss of negative ions in a negative ion source, which reduces the electron temperature in front of the PG. However, the magnetic field diffused into the driver has some influence on the plasma outflowing. In order to investigate the effect of changing this magnetic field on the outflowing of plasma from the driver, a circular ring(absorber) of high permeability iron has been introduced at the driver exit, which can reduce the magnetic field around it and improve plasma outflowing. With the application of the absorber, the electron density is increased by about 35%, and the extraction current measured from the extraction grid is increased from 1.02 A to 1.29 A. The results of the extraction experiment with cesium injection show that both the extraction grid(EG) current and H-current are increased when the absorber is introduced.

3D fluid model analysis on the generation of negative hydrogen ions for negative ion source of NBI

A radio-frequency(RF) inductively coupled negative hydrogen ion source(NHIS) has been adopted in the China Fusion Engineering Test Reactor(CFETR) to generate negative hydrogen ions.By incorporating the level-lumping method into a three-dimensional fluid model,the volume production and transportation of H^(-) in the NHIS,which consists of a cylindrical driver region and a rectangular expansion chamber,are investigated self-consistently at a large input power(40 k W) and different pressures(0.3–2.0 Pa).The results indicate that with the increase of pressure,the H^(-) density at the bottom of the expansion region first increases and then decreases.In addition,the effect of the magnetic filter is examined.It is noteworthy that a significant increase in the H^(-) density is observed when the magnetic filter is introduced.As the permanent magnets move towards the driver region,the H^(-) density decreases monotonically and the asymmetry is enhanced.This study contributes to the understanding of H-distribution under various conditions and facilitates the optimization of volume production of negative hydrogen ions in the NHIS.

An analysis and preliminary experiment of the discharge characteristics of RF ion source with electromagnetic shielding

Combined with two-dimensional(2D)and three-dimensional(3D)finite element analysis and preliminary experimental tests,the effects of size and placement of the electromagnetic shield of the radio-frequency(RF)ion source with two drivers on plasma parameters and RF power transfer efficiency are analyzed.It is found that the same input direction of the current is better for the RF ion source with multiple drivers.The electromagnetic shield(EMS)should be placed symmetrically around the drivers,which is beneficial for the plasma to distribute uniformly and symmetrically in both drivers.Furthermore,the bigger the EMS shield radius is the better generating a higher electron density.These results will be of guiding significance to the design of electromagnetic shielding for RF ion sources with a multi-driver.

Characteristics of the pressure profile in the accelerator on the RF negative ion source at ASIPP

Neutral beam injection(NBI)systems based on negative hydrogen ion sources-rather than the positive ion sources that have typically been used to date-will be used in the future magnetically confined nuclear fusion experiments to heat the plasma.The collisions between the fast negative ions and neutral background gas result in a significant number of high-energy positive ions being produced in the acceleration area,and for the high-power long-pulse operation of NBI systems,this acceleration of positive ions back to the ion source creates heat load and material sputtering on the source backplate.This difficulty cannot be ignored,with the neutral gas density in the acceleration region having a significant impact on the flux density of the backstreaming positive ions.In the work reported here,the pressure gradient in the acceleration region was estimated using an ionization gauge and a straightforward 1D computation,and it was found that once gas traveled through the acceleration region,the pressure dropped by nearly one order of magnitude,with the largest pressure drop occurring at the plasma grid.The computation also revealed that the pressure drop in the grid gaps was substantially smaller than that in the grid apertures.

Influence of magnetic filter field on the radio-frequency negative hydrogen ion source of neutral beam injector for China Fusion Engineering Test Reactor

In the design of negative hydrogen ion sources,a magnetic filter field of tens of Gauss at the expansion region is essential to reduce the electron temperature,which usually results in a magnetic field of around 10 Gauss in the driver region,destabilizing the discharge.The magnetic shield technique is proposed in this work to reduce the magnetic field in the driver region and improve the discharge characteristics.In this paper,a three-dimensional fluid model is developed within COMSOL to study the influence of the magnetic shield on the generation and transport of plasmas in the negative hydrogen ion source.It is found that when the magnetic shield material is applied at the interface of the expansion region and the driver region,the electron density can be effectively increased.For instance,the maximum of the electron density is 6.7×10^(17)m^(-3)in the case without the magnetic shield,and the value increases to 9.4×10^(17)m^(-3)when the magnetic shield is introduced.

The research progress of an E//B neutral particle analyzer

An E//B neutral particle analyzer(NPA)has been designed and is under development at Sichuan University and Southwestern Institute of Physics.The main purpose of the E//B NPA is to measure the distribution function of fast ions in the HL-2A/3 tokamak.The E//B NPA contains three main units,i.e.the stripping unit,the analyzing unit and the detection unit.A gas stripping chamber was adopted as the stripping unit.The results of the simulations and beam tests for the stripping chamber are presented.Parallel electric and magnetic fields provided by a NdFeB permanent magnet and two parallel electric plates were designed and constructed for the analyzing unit.The calibration of the magnetic and electric fields was performed using a 50 kV electron cyclotron resonance ion source(ECRIS)platform.The detection unit consists of 32lutetium-yttrium oxyorthosilicate(LYSO)detector modules arranged in two rows.The response functions ofα,hydrogen ions(H^(+),H_(2)^(+)and H_(3)^(+))andγfor a detector module were measured with^(241)Am,^(137)Cs and^(152)Eu sources together with the 50 kV ECRIS platform.The overall results indicate that the designed E//B NPA device is capable of measuring the intensity of neutral hydrogen and deuteron atoms with energy higher than 20 keV.

Progress of the RF negative hydrogen ion source for fusion at HUST

Huazhong University of Science and Technology has developed an experimental setup of a radio frequency(RF) driven negative hydrogen ion source,to investigate the physics of production and extraction of the H^(-)ions for neutral beam injection in nuclear fusion reactors.The main design parameters of the ion source are:RF power ≤40 kW;extraction voltage ≤10kV;accelerator voltage ≤20 kV.This paper gives an overview of the progress of the ion source with particular emphasis on some issues.The RF driver and source plasma are analyzed and optimized in terms of impedance matching,plasma characteristics and power coupling.In regard to the simulation analysis,a plasma model based on the particle-in-cell method and a beam trajectory model considering beam stripping loss are developed to investigate the plasma and negative ions transport inside the ion source.Furthermore,a collisional radiative model of H and H2is built for plasma optical diagnosis.

The Development of a Megawatt-Level High Current Ion Source

Neutral beam injection is one of the main plasma heating methods in nuclear fusion devices. In order to support the scientific study of the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak （EAST）, a megawatt-level high current ion source is designed and manufactured in the ASIPP, and the progress and preliminary test results will be presented in this paper.

Commissioning of a high-resolution collinear laser spectroscopy apparatus with a laser ablation ion source

Collinear laser spectroscopy is a powerful tool for studying the nuclear spins,electromagnetic moments,and charge radii of exotic nuclei.To study the nuclear properties of unstable nuclei at the Beijing Radioactive Ion-beam Facility(BRIF)and the future High Intensity Heavy-ion Accelerator Facility(HIAF),we developed a collinear laser spectroscopy apparatus integrated with an offline laser ablation ion source and a laser system.The overall performance of this state-of-the-art technique was evaluated,and the system was commissioned using a bunched stable ion beam.The high-resolution optical spectra for the 4s ^(2)S_(1/2)→4p^(2)P_(3/2)(D2)ionic transition of ^(40;42;44;48)Ca isotopes were successfully measured.The extracted isotope shifts relative to ^(40)Ca showed excellent agreement with the literature values.This system is now ready for use at radioactive ion beam facilities such as the BRIF and paves the way for the further development of higher-sensitivity collinear resonance ionization spectroscopy techniques.

Preliminary Results of Ion Beam Extraction Tests on EAST Neutral Beam Injector

The neutral beam injection （NBI） system is one of the most important auxiliary plasma heating and current driving methods for fusion device. A high power ion beam of 3 MW with 80 keV beam energy in 0.5 s beam duration and a long pulse ion beam of 4 s with 50 keV beam energy ion beam extraction were achieved on the EAST neutral beam injector on the teststand. The preliminary results show that the EAST-NBI system was developed successfully on schedule.

The development of data acquisition and processing application system for RF ion source

As the key ion source component of nuclear fusion auxiliary heating devices, the radio frequency （RF） ion source is developed and applied gradually to offer a source plasma with the advantages of ease of control and high reliability. In addition, it easily achieves long-pulse steady-state operation. During the process of the development and testing of the RF ion source, a lot of original experimental data will be generated. Therefore, it is necessary to develop a stable and reliable computer data acquisition and processing application system for realizing the functions of data acquisition, storage, access, and real-time monitoring. In this paper, the development of a data acquisition and processing application system for the RF ion source is presented. The hardware platform is based on the PXI system and the software is programmed on the LabVIEW development environment. The key technologies that are used for the implementation of this software programming mainly include the long-pulse data acquisition technology, multi- threading processing technology, transmission control communication protocol, and the Lempel-Ziv-Oberhumer data compression algorithm. Now, this design has been tested and applied on the RF ion source. The test results show that it can work reliably and steadily. With the help of this design, the stable plasma discharge data of the RF ion source are collected, stored, accessed, and monitored in real-time. It is shown that it has a very practical application significance for the RF experiments.

Hefei utility negative ions test equipment with RF source:commissioning and first results

In order to study the key technology and physics of RF driven negative ion source for neutral beam injector in China, the Hefei utility negative ions test equipment with RF source was developed at Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences（ASIPP）. Its negative ion source can be equipped with single or double RF drivers. There is a plasma expansion chamber with depth of 19 mm and an enhanced filter field. A three electrodes negative ion accelerator was employed to extract and accelerate the negative ions, which are plasma grid,extraction grid and ground grid. And there are several diagnostic tools for the plasma and beam parameters measurement. The characteristics of plasma generation, negative ion production and extraction were studied on the test equipment. The negative ion beam was extracted from the RF driven negative ion source for the first time. The detailed structure and main results are presented in this article.

Diagnosing the Fine Structure of Electron Energy Within the ECRIT Ion Source

The ion source of the electron cyclotron resonance ion thruster （ECRIT） extracts ions from its ECR plasma to generate thrust, and has the property of low gas consumption （2 seem, standard-state cubic centimeter per minute） and high durability. Due to the indispensable effects of the primary electron in gas discharge, it is important to experimentally clarify the electron energy structure within the ion source of the ECRIT through analyzing the electron energy distribution function （EEDF） of the plasma inside the thruster. In this article the Langmuir probe diagnosing method was used to diagnose the EEDF, from which the effective electron temperature, plasma density and the electron energy probability function （EEPF） were deduced. The experimental results show that the magnetic field influences the curves of EEDF and EEPF and make the effective plasma parameter nonuniform. The diagnosed electron temperature and density from sample points increased from 4 eV/2 ×10^16 m-3 to 10 eV/4×10^16 m-3 with increasing distances from both the axis and the screen grid of the ion source. Electron temperature and density peaking near the wall coincided with the discharge process. However, a double Maxwellian electron distribution was unexpectedly observed at the position near the axis of the ion source and about 30 mm from the screen grid. Besides, the double Maxwellian electron distribution was more likely to emerge at high power and a low gas flow rate. These phenomena were believed to relate to the arrangements of the gas inlets and the magnetic field where the double Maxwellian electron distribution exits. The results of this research may enhance the understanding of the plasma generation process in the ion source of this type and help to improve its performance.

Laser ion source for heavy ion inertial fusion

The proposed heavy ion inertial fusion(HIF)scenarios require ampere class low charge state ion beams of heavy species.The laser ion source(LIS)is recognized as one of the promising candidates of ion beam providers,since it can deliver high brightness heavy ion beams to accelerators.The design of LIS for the HIF depends on the accelerator structure and accelerator complex following the source.In this article,we discuss the specifications and design of an appropriate LIS assuming two major types of the accelerators:radio frequency(RF)high quality factor cavity type and non-resonant induction core type.We believe that a properly designed LIS would satisfy the requirements of both types,while some issues need to be verified experimentally.