Explanation for MARFE formation and subsequent evolution into a detached symmetric plasma edge

Technical Report · Mon Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1996

OSTI ID:220379

Stacey, W M

An explanation is proposed for the experimentally observed tokamak phenomenon of a symmetric radiating edge evolving with increasing density into a multifaceted asymmetric radiation from the edge (MARFE) condition and then cooling into a detached plasma with a symmetric edge. The thermal stability impurity density limits increase with the poloidal mode number, m, of the edge plasma distribution. When the edge impurity density exceeds the m equal to 0 mode density limit, the edge plasma evolves into a mixture of m greater than 0 modes which becomes more highly asymmetric as the density increase further and exceeds the density limits of successively higher modes, forcing the plasma into the remaining stable higher-m modes - the stable MARFE.

• Research Organization: Georgia Inst. of Tech., Atlanta, GA (United States). Fusion Research Center
• OSTI ID: 220379
• Report Number(s): PB--96-152400/XAB; GTFR--124
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY
MARFE
PLASMA DENSITY
PLASMA INSTABILITY
STABILITY
SYMMETRY
TEMPERATURE DEPENDENCE
TOKAMAK DEVICES