J-TEXT achievements in turbulence and transport in support of future device/reactor

Following the reconstruction of the TEXT tokamak at Huazhong University of Science and Technology in China, renamed as J-TEXT, a plethora of experimental and theoretical investigations has been conducted to elucidate the intricacies of turbulent transport within the tokamak configuration. These endeavors encompass not only the J-TEXT device's experimental advancements but also delve into critical issues pertinent to the optimization of future fusion devices and reactors. The research includes topics on the suppression of turbulence, flow drive and damping, density limit, non-local transport, intrinsic toroidal flow, turbulence and flow with magnetic islands, turbulent transport in the stochastic layer, and turbulence and zonal flow with energetic particles or helium ash. Several important achievements have been made in the last few years, which will be further elaborated upon in this comprehensive review.

Measurement of molybdenum ion density for L-mode and H-mode plasma discharges in the EAST tokamak

We report the measurement of total molybdenum ion density for L-mode and H-mode plasmas on EAST using spectral lines observation and calculation based on an impurity transport code.A flat-filed extreme ultraviolet spectrometer with some spatial resolution is used to obtain the radial profiles of molybdenum spectral line emissions.The absolute calibration for the extreme ultraviolet spectrometer is finished by comparing the calculated bremsstrahlung intensity with the readings of CCD detector.Molybdenum ion transport study is performed using the radial ion density profiles and one-dimensional impurity transport code STRAHL.The total molybdenum density profiles are determined from the transport analysis.The molybdenum density during L-mode and H-mode phases are obtained,which are about 3 and 4 orders of magnitude smaller than the electron density,respectively.An inward pinch is found during the H-mode phase that leads to the peaked profile of molybdenum density.

Translation speed measurements of hydrogen, helium, and argon field-reversed configurations in the central cell of a KMAX mirror device

A series of experimental results of field-reversed configurations(FRCs) on a KMAX(Keda Mirror with AXisymmetricity) tandem mirror machine are reported.Single-side FRC translation processes with three different gas species were measured by avalanche photodiodes.Consistent with the theoretical prediction, the measured FRC speeds were inversely proportional to the square root of the ion mass.However, the speeds of the hydrogen FRC increased even in a uniform magnetic field region while the speeds of the helium and argon FRCs decreased.Possible mechanisms are discussed.The speed of the second pass due to the reflection of the mirror fields was found to be ~1/3 of the first pass speed.The internal magnetic fields were measured for a colliding-merging argon FRC, and the results show that, even for very slowmoving FRCs, merging can occur.

Fabrication and absolute calibration of B-dot probe for magnetic field measurement on a high power laser facility

The fabrication and absolute calibration of a B-dot probe is employed to measure the pulsed magnetic field at the Shenguang-Ⅱhigh power laser facility.Copper enameled silk with a cross section diameter of 0.1 mm is used to wind the one-turn coil with a 1 mm diameter.Two coils are paired and reversely linked to their respective circuits to form a differential B-dot probe that is sealed in and protected by a quartz shell.This B-dot probe is experimentally calibrated and then used to measure the pulsed magnetic field in laser targeting experiments at the Shenguang-Ⅱhigh power laser facility.Signals show a high performance of this B-dot probe.The common mode noise can be effectively canceled out by the differential pair.The magnetic field of over 300 T can be extrapolated at the location close to the target.

Construction of an Hα diagnostic system and its application to determine neutral hydrogen densities on the Keda Torus eXperiment

A 10-channel Hα diagnostic system has been designed with the rapid response rate of 300 kHz, spatial resolution of about 40 mm, and overlap between adjacent channels of about 3%, and it has been implemented successfully on Keda Torus eXperiment(KTX), a newly constructed, reversed field pinch(RFP) experimental device at the University of Science and Technology of China(USTC). This diagnostic system is a very important tool for the initial KTX operations. It is compact,with an aperture slit replacing the traditional optical lens system. A flexural interference filter is designed to prevent the center wavelength from shifting too much as the increase of angle from vertical incidence. To eliminate the stray light,the interior of the system is covered with the black aluminum foil having a very high absorptivity. Using the Hαemission data, together with the profiles of electron temperature and density obtained from the Langmuir probe, the neutral density profiles have been calculated for KTX plasmas. The rapid response rate and good spatial resolution of this Hαdiagnostic system will be beneficial for many studies in RFP plasma physics.

Separating the contributions of electric and magnetic fields in deflecting the probes in proton radiography with multiple proton energies

In proton radiography,degeneracy of electric and magnetic fields in deflecting the probe protons can prevent full interpretation of proton flux perturbations in the detection plane.In this paper,theoretical analyses and numerical simulations suggest that the contributions of the electric and magnetic fields can be separately obtained by analyzing the difference between the flux distributions of two discriminated proton energies in a single shot of proton radiography.To eliminate the influence of field evolution on the separation,a strategy is proposed in which slow field evolution is assumed or an approximate estimate of field growth is made.This could help achieve a clearer understanding of the radiographic process and allow further quantitative analysis.

Experimental Investigations of Quasi-Coherent Micro-Instabilities in J-TEXT Ohmic Plasmas

Quasi-coherent micro-instabilities is one of the key topics of magnetic confinement fusion. This work focuses on the quasi-coherent spectra of ion temperature gradient(ITG) and trapped-electron-mode instabilities using newly developed far-forward collective scattering measurements within ohmic plasmas in the J-TEXT tokamak.The ITG mode is characterized by frequencies ranging from 30 to 100 k Hz and wavenumbers(k_(θρs)) less than 0.3. Beyond a critical plasma density threshold, the ITG mode undergoes a bifurcation, which is marked by a reduction in frequency and an enhancement in amplitude. Concurrently, enhancements in ion energy loss and degradation in confinement are observed. This ground-breaking discovery represents the first instance of direct experimental evidence that establishes a clear link between ITG instability and ion thermal transport.

Measurement of the neutron total cross section of carbon at the Back-n white neutron beam of CSNS

To verify the performance of the neutron total cross-sectional spectrometer, the neutron total cross section of carbon is initially measured in the energy range of 1 eV to 20 MeV using the time-of-flight method. The measurement is performed at the Back-n white neutron source with a 76-m time-of-flight path using the China Spallation Neutron Source. A multilayer fast fission chamber with 235U and 238U is employed as the neutron detector. The diameter and thickness of the natural graphite sample are 70 mm and 40 mm, respectively. Signal waveforms are collected using a data acquisition system. Off-line data processing was used to obtain the neutron time-of-flight spectra and transmissions. The uncertainty of the counting statistics is generally approximately 3% for each bin in the energy range of 1–20 MeV. It is determined that the results for the neutron total cross section of carbon obtained using ^235U cells are in good agreement with the results obtained using 238U cells within limits of statistical uncertainty. Moreover, the measured total cross sections show good agreement with the broadening evaluated data.

Back-n white neutron source at CSNS and its applications

Back-streaming neutrons from the spallation target of the China Spallation Neutron Source(CSNS)that emit through the incoming proton channel were exploited to build a white neutron beam facility(the so-called Back-n white neutron source),which was completed in March 2018.The Back-n neutron beam is very intense,at approximately 29107 n/cm2/s at 55 m from the target,and has a nominal proton beam with a power of 100 kW in the CSNS-I phase and a kinetic energy of 1.6 GeV and a thick tungsten target in multiple slices with modest moderation from the cooling water through the slices.In addition,the excellent energy spectrum spanning from 0.5 eV to 200 MeV,and a good time resolution related tothe time-of-flight measurements make it a typical white neutron source for nuclear data measurements;its overall performance is among that of the best white neutron sources in the world.Equipped with advanced spectrometers,detectors,and application utilities,the Back-n facility can serve wide applications,with a focus on neutron-induced cross-sectional measurements.This article presents an overview of the neutron beam characteristics,the experimental setups,and the ongoing applications at Backn.

Development of vacuum ultraviolet spectroscopy for measuring edge impurity emission in the EAST tokamak

The dominant wavelength range of edge impurity emissions moves from the visible range to the vacuum ultraviolet(VUV)range,as heating power increasing in the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak(EAST).The measurement provided by the existing visible spectroscopies in EAST is not sufficient for impurity transport studies for high-parameters plasmas.Therefore,in this study,a VUV spectroscopy is newly developed to measure edge impurity emissions in EAST.One Seya-Namioka VUV spectrometer(McPherson 234/302)is used in the system,equipped with a concave-corrected holographic grating with groove density of 600 grooves mm-1.Impurity line emissions can be observed in the wavelength range ofλ=50-700 nm,covering VUV,near ultraviolet and visible ranges.The observed vertical range is Z=-350-350 mm.The minimum sampling time can be set to 5 ms under full vertical binning(FVB)mode.VUV spectroscopy has been used to measure the edge impurity emission for the 2019 EAST experimental campaign.Impurity spectra are identified for several impurity species,i.e.,lithium(Li),carbon(C),oxygen(O),and iron(Fe).Several candidates for tungsten(W)lines are also measured but their clear identification is very difficult due to a strong overlap with Fe lines.Time evolutions of impurity carbon emissions of CⅡat 134.5 nm and CⅢat 97.7 nm are analyzed to prove the system capability of time-resolved measurement.The measurements of the VUV spectroscopy are very helpful for edge impurity transport study in the high-parameters plasma in EAST.

Recent research progress of laser plasma interactions in Shenguang laser facilities

Wereport experimental research on laser plasma interaction(LPI)conducted in Shenguang laser facilities during the past ten years.The research generally consists of three phases:(1)developing platforms for LPI research in mm-scale plasma with limited drive energy,where both gasbag and gas-filled hohlraum targets are tested;(2)studying the effects of beam-smoothing techniques,such as continuous phase plate and polarization smoothing,on the suppression of LPI;and(3)exploring the factors affecting LPI in integrated implosion experiments,which include the laser intensity,gas-fill pressure,size of the laser-entrance hole,and interplay between different beam cones.Results obtained in each phase will be presented and discussed in detail.

Measurement of the ^(232)Th(n,f)cross section in the 1-200 MeV range at the CSNS Back-n

The ^(232)Th(n,f)cross section is very important in basic nuclear physics and applications based on the Th/U fuel cycle.Using the time-of-flight method and a multi-cell fast-fission ionization chamber,a novel measurement of the^(232)Th(n,f)cross sec-tion relative to^(235)U in the 1–200 MeV range was performed at the China Spallation Neutron Source Back-n white neutron source(Back-n).The fission event-neutron energy spectra of^(232)Th and^(235)U fission cells were measured in the single-bunch mode.Corrected 232Th/235U fission cross-sectional ratios were obtained,and the measurement uncertainties were 2.5–3.7%for energies in the 2–20 MeV range and 3.6–6.2%for energies in the 20–200 MeV range.The^(232)Th(n,f)cross section was obtained by introducing the standard cross section of^(235)U(n,f).The results were compared with those of previous theoreti-cal calculations,measurements,and evaluations.The measured 232Th fission cross section agreed with the main evaluation results in terms of the experimental uncertainty,and 232Th fission resonances were observed in the 1–3 MeV range.The present results provide^(232)Th(n,f)cross-sectional data for the evaluation and design of Th/U cycle nuclear systems.

Sensitivity of two drug-resistant bacteria to low-temperature air plasma in catheterassociated urinary tract infections under different environments

The high incidence of catheter-associated urinary tract infections,which are dominated by drugresistant bacteria,has attracted an increasing number of researchers interested in solving this public health problem.The purpose of this study was to explore the killing effect of lowtemperature air plasma(LTAP)on extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing Escherichia coli and high level gentamycin resistance enterococci under two simulated environments in vitro.The results showed that the survival rate of these two kinds of bacteria decreased to less than20%after being treated by LTAP in different environments for 5 min.A comparison of the LTAP treatments showed that the killing efficacy of the two kinds of bacteria in the early stage(0-1 min)was up to 50%.Moreover,the results of transmission electron microscopy,reactive nitrogen species measurement,and a temperature test indicated that the bactericidal effect of the LTAP treatment on the two kinds of bacteria worked through the destruction of the ribosome and other organelles inside the bacteria,rather than the thermal effect,to achieve sterilization.

Investigation of ion fishbone stability on HL-2A using NIMROD

Numerical calculations of resistive internal kink mode with effects of energetic particles(EPs) on HL-2A have been performed using the hybrid kinetic-MHD model inplemented in the NIMROD code.The m/n=1/1 resistive internal kink mode is unstable in MHD limit.However, with kinetic effects of energetic ions, a fishbone mode is excited with mode frequency around 10 kHz.We calculate the impact of resistivity on the growth rate and frequency of ion fishbone mode,and the results are in good agreement with the analytic solutions, which are obtained by solving the fishbone dispertion relation including resistivity effect.The effects of βfracand cut off velocity of EP on fishbone mode are calculated in detail, where βfracis the ratio of EP pressure to background plasma pressure.This work presents a clear explanation of the stabilizing effect of ECRH on ion fishbone, which is first observed on HL-2A.

Fast estimation of ion temperature from EAST charge exchange recombination spectroscopy using neural network

Ion temperature, as one of the most critical plasma parameters, can be diagnosed by charge exchange recombination spectroscopy (CXRS). Iterative least-squares fitting is conventionally used to analyze CXRS spectra to identify the active charge exchange component, which is the result of local interaction between impurity ions with a neutral beam. Due to the limit of the time consumption of the conventional approach (~100 ms per frame), the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak CXRS data is now analyzed in-between shots. To explore the feasibility of real-time measurement, neural networks are introduced to perform fast estimation of ion temperature. Based on the same four-layer neural network architecture, two neural networks are trained for two central chords according to the ion temperature data acquired from the conventional method. Using the TensorFlow framework, the training procedures are performed by an error back-propagation algorithm with the regularization via the weight decay method. Good agreement in the deduced ion temperature is shown for the neural networks and the conventional approach, while the data processing time is reduced by 3 orders of magnitude (~0.1 ms per frame) by using the neural networks.

Energy behavior of Boris algorithm

Boris numerical scheme due to its long-time stability,accuracy and conservative properties has been widely applied in many studies of magnetized plasmas.Such algorithms conserve the phase space volume and hence provide accurate charge particle orbits.However,this algorithm does not conserve the energy in some special electromagnetic configurations,particularly for long simulation times.Here,we empirically analyze the energy behavior of Boris algorithm by applying it to a 2D autonomous Hamiltonian.The energy behavior of the Boris method is found to be strongly related to the integrability of our Hamiltonian system.We find that if the invariant tori is preserved under Boris discretization,the energy error can be bounded for an exponentially long time,otherwise the said error will show a linear growth.On the contrary,for a non-integrable Hamiltonian system,a random walk pattern has been observed in the energy error.

Measurement of tungsten impurity spectra with a two-crystal X-ray crystal spectrometer on EAST

Spectral measurement of tungsten(W)impurity is essential to study impurity transport.Therefore,an X-ray crystal spectrometer(XCS)on EAST was used to measure the line spectra from highly ionized W ions.On EAST,both poloidal XCS and tangential XCS have been developed to measure the plasma temperature as well as the rotation velocity.Recently,He-like and H-like argon spectra have also been obtained using a two-crystal setup.W lines are identified in this study.Through a careful analysis,the W lines of 3.9336,3.9321,and 3.664(A)are found to be diffracted by He-like or H-like crystals.The lines are confirmed with the NIST database.We also calculated the ion temperature with Doppler broadening of these lines.The ion temperature from the W lines is entirely consistent with that from Ar line spectra.The measurement of these W line spectra could be used to study W impurity transport in future work.

The effect of positive/negative ion on the dust grain charging process in a Vasyliunas-Cairns (VC)-distributed dusty plasma system

Charging mechanism of dust particles has been considered as a growing research area in dusty plasma physics because of its exciting results.In this paper,we consider a low-temperature non-equilibrium multispecies plasma model,which consists of Vasyliunas-Caims (VC) distributed electrons,negative/positive streaming ions,and negatively-charged dust grains to explain the charging mechanism of dust grains.The main theme of this work is to derive expressions of currents for negatively-charged dust grains (considering an equilibrium state position) in the plasma environment comprised of electrons and positive/negative streaming ions using the VC distribution function.Our proposed model shows that the dust grain surface potential is significantly affected by different plasma parameters such as the negative ion streaming velocity (Sn),positive ion streaming velocity (Si),spectral indices of VC distribution,negative ion charging state (Zn),positive ion charging state (Zi),and negative ion number density (ρ).

Estimation of plasma equilibrium parameters via a neural network approach

Plasma equilibrium parameters such as position, X-point, internal inductance, and poloidal beta are essential information for efficient and safe operation of tokamak. In this work, the artificial neural network is used to establish a non-linear relationship between the measured diagnostic signals and selected equilibrium parameters. The estimation process is split into a preliminary classification of the kind of equilibrium(limiter or divertor) and subsequent inference of the equilibrium parameters. The training and testing datasets are generated by the tokamak simulation code(TSC), which has been benchmarked with the EAST experimental data. The noise immunity of the inference model is tested. Adding noise to model inputs during training process is proved to have a certain ability for maintaining performance.

The application of limiter target electrostatic measurement system in J-TEXT tokamak

The limiter target electrostatic measurement system including limiter grounding current sensors and Langmuir probes have been newly developed for the measurement of the limiter target area on the Joint-Texas Experimental tokamak (J-TEXT). Current sensors fixed between graphite limiters and the vacuum vessel walls are used to measure the currents between limiters and vessel wall. Simultaneously, a rectangular poloidal array containing 54 Langmuir probes is embedded in the graphite tiles of limiters for a more localized measurement. Based on this system, the effect of both the plasma’s inherent behavior, including plasma motion and the 2/1 tearing mode, and the electrode biasing on probe and sensor signals have been observed and analyzed in the experiments.