Reduced Edge Instability and Improved Confinement in the MST Reversed-Field Pinch

200171 citationsJournal Article

Authors

B. E. Chapman · University of Wisconsin–Madison

J. K. Anderson · University of Wisconsin–Madison

T. M. Biewer · University of Wisconsin–Madison

D. L. Brower · University of California, Los Angeles

S. Castillo · University of Wisconsin–Madison

P. K. Chattopadhyay · University of Wisconsin–Madison

C. S. Chiang

Abstract

Improved confinement has been achieved in the MST through control of the poloidal electric field, but it is now known that the improvement has been limited by bursts of an edge-resonant instability. Through refined poloidal electric field control, plus control of the toroidal electric field, we have suppressed these bursts. This has led to a total beta of 15% and a reversed-field-pinch-record estimated energy confinement time of 10 ms, a tenfold increase over the standard value which for the first time substantially exceeds the confinement scaling that has characterized most reversed-field-pinch plasmas.

Topics & Keywords

Magnetic confinement fusion research Particle accelerators and beam dynamics Superconducting Materials and Applications

UN Sustainable Development Goals

Affordable and clean energy

Publication Details

Published in: Physical Review Letters

Volume 87, Issue 20, pp. 205001-205001

DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.87.205001

Field-Weighted Citation Impact: 13.61