Physics and Control of Locked Modes in the DIII-D Tokamak
- Columbia Univ., New York, NY (United States). Dept. of Applied Physics and Applied Mathematics
This Final Technical Report summarizes an investigation, carried out under the auspices of the DOE Early Career Award, of the physics and control of non-rotating magnetic islands (“locked modes”) in tokamak plasmas. Locked modes are one of the main causes of disruptions in present tokamaks, and could be an even bigger concern in ITER, due to its relatively high beta (favoring the formation of Neoclassical Tearing Mode islands) and low rotation (favoring locking). For these reasons, this research had the goal of studying and learning how to control locked modes in the DIII-D National Fusion Facility under ITER-relevant conditions of high pressure and low rotation. Major results included: the first full suppression of locked modes and avoidance of the associated disruptions; the demonstration of error field detection from the interaction between locked modes, applied rotating fields and intrinsic errors; the analysis of a vast database of disruptive locked modes, which led to criteria for disruption prediction and avoidance.
- Research Organization:
- Columbia Univ., New York, NY (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Science (SC), Fusion Energy Sciences (FES)
- DOE Contract Number:
- SC0008520
- OSTI ID:
- 1341412
- Report Number(s):
- 1; TRN: US1701842
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Experimental evidence of electron-cyclotron current drive-based neoclassical tearing mode suppression threshold reduction during mode locking on DIII-D
A fresh look at electron cyclotron current drive power requirements for stabilization of tearing modes in ITER