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Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion
Journal Prestige (SJR): 0.69

Citation Impact (citeScore): 2
Number of Followers: 10

Hybrid journal (It can contain Open Access articles)
ISSN (Print) 0741-3335 - ISSN (Online) 1361-6587
Published by IOP

[45 journals]

Enhanced generation of attosecond electron beams via laser-irradiated thin
film targets
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  Authors: Xuan Ye; Yan Lv, Zhijun Zhang, Shiyi Zhou Jiansheng Liu
  First page: 065017
  Abstract: Attosecond electron beams can be generated from laser-irradiated solid targets, but controlling their charge and energy remains challenging. This paper proposes a method to enhance electron emission from thin-film targets using intense laser pulses. Theoretical and numerical analyses reveal that, in addition to electrons emitted from the target’s front surface, many are reflected and further accelerated by the dynamically growing rear sheath field. Scaling laws describe the dependence of emission on laser pulse duration, target thickness, and intensity. This method enables the production of attosecond electron beams with higher energy and charge, advancing ultrafast electron dynamics and high-energy-density physics.
  Citation: Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion
  PubDate: 2025-06-01T23:00:00Z
  DOI: 10.1088/1361-6587/addb77
  Issue No: Vol. 67, No. 6 (2025)
Parametric raytracing modeling for NSTX-U scenario development with high
harmonic fast waves and neutral beam injection
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  Authors: B Van Compernolle; X Jian, N Bertelli, S Desai, J B Lestz, J McClenaghan, M Ono, R I Pinsker K Thome
  First page: 065018
  Abstract: High harmonic fast waves (HHFW) are a versatile heating and current drive tool for scenario development. Extensive modeling scans were performed to find optimal parameters for different uses of HHFW in National Spherical Tokamak Experiment (NSTX-U). Scans of plasma density, temperature, magnetic field, and antenna phasing were performed both with and without neutral beam injection. For speed of calculation, the ray-tracing code GENRAY coupled to the quasilinear Fokker–Planck code CQL3D was used. CQL3D allows for a more accurate description of the fast ion population, as well as for quasilinear effects such as HHFW-induced modifications of the distribution function. Best current drive results are obtained at elevated electron temperatures and with the lowest kφ phasing. Adding neutral beams however typically strongly reduces the HHFW current drive efficiency at the low density cases due to HHFW absorption on beam ions. Results of this parametric study will feed into scenario development and predict-first whole-shot modeling of NSTX-U discharges.
  Citation: Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion
  PubDate: 2025-06-01T23:00:00Z
  DOI: 10.1088/1361-6587/addb75
  Issue No: Vol. 67, No. 6 (2025)
Computation of generalised magnetic coordinates asymptotically close to
the separatrix
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  Authors: S Benjamin; N C Logan C Hansen
  First page: 065019
  Abstract: Integrals to calculate generalised magnetic coordinates from an input magnetic flux function asymptotically close to the separatrix are presented, and implemented in the GPEC/DCON code suite. These integrals allow characterisation of the magnetic equilibrium of a diverted tokamak, in magnetic coordinates, arbitrarily close to the last closed flux surface, avoiding the numerical issues associated with calculating diverging field-line integrals near a magnetic x-point. These methods may assist ongoing efforts to develop robust asymptotic equilibrium behaviour for spectral 3D MHD codes at the separatrix.
  Citation: Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion
  PubDate: 2025-06-02T23:00:00Z
  DOI: 10.1088/1361-6587/add9ca
  Issue No: Vol. 67, No. 6 (2025)
Numerical reconstruction of Langmuir probe measurements obtained from the
negative ion source for ITER (SPIDER)
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  Authors: Roman Zagórski; Daniel López-Bruna, Isabella Mario, Antonio Pimazzoni, Carlo Poggi, Iacopo Regoli, Emanuele Sartori, Alastair Shepherd, Edgard Zuin, Gianluigi Serianni NBTF Team
  First page: 065020
  Abstract: The results of numerical studies on the plasma parameters in Source for the Production of Ions of Deuterium Extracted from Radio-frequency (RF) plasma (SPIDER) source are presented. The analysis was performed using the numerical code Fluid Solver for SPIDER in 2D (FSFS2D), which provides a self-consistent two-dimensional description of the source, including neutral gas flow, plasma chemistry, RF coupling in the driver, and plasma transport through the magnetic filter. The different particle species were described using separate continuity equations. The electron temperature is governed by the electron energy equation, whereas the plasma potential is described by the Poisson equation. The FSFS2D code was used to investigate the SPIDER source by performing several numerical scans. The results of the simulations were validated using the existing experimental databases of Langmuir probe measurements. The code not only reproduced the plasma profiles but also provided some information on the response of the plasma parameters to specific scans of the operational quantities. It was found that neutral depletion increased with an increase in the magnetic field in the filter, which is in qualitative agreement with the experimental data from SPIDER. Studies of the negative ion performance showed that an increase in almost all the considered operational parameters leads to an enhancement of the negative ion current. The degradation of the negative ion performance was observed only in the case of the RF power scan. However, the degradation of the negative ion current disappeared at sufficiently large plasma grid potentials. The first simulation results in cylindrical geometry indicate that rectangular geometry is more appropriate for reproducing experimental results from SPIDER. However, recent developments in the model led to results close to those of the experiment in the cylindrical case. A strong influence of the neutral and ion models on the results was observed, which calls for the inclusion of new equations into the model (ion and neutral temperature models and momentum equation for the gas dynamics).
  Citation: Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion
  PubDate: 2025-06-03T23:00:00Z
  DOI: 10.1088/1361-6587/addb72
  Issue No: Vol. 67, No. 6 (2025)
Ideal magnetohydrodynamic instabilities in tokamaks driven by strong
toroidal plasma rotation: an analytical and numerical investigation
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  Authors: C Schaumans; J P Graves
  First page: 065021
  Abstract: For toroidal flows of the order of the ion sound speed, a large aspect ratio expansion of the ideal magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) model predicts the growth of a rotation-driven MHD instability. Two main driving mechanisms for this instability have been identified. The first is an enhanced pressure gradient across the mode width which can be regarded as a rotational analogue to the thermal pressure drive of infernal modes. The second is related to the rotation-induced variation of density along the magnetic field lines for an isothermal equilibrium. This mechanism is purely stabilizing for poloidal mode number m = 1 but can drive the instability for m > 1 given sufficiently large (negative) density and rotation gradients. In this work, a large rotation asymptotic expansion of the mode dispersion relation is used to analyze the driving and damping mechanisms of the rotation-driven mode in the presence of strong density, temperature and pressure gradients. This analytic model is compared favorably against the full MHD code VENUS-MHD. The mode is shown to be damped by the high-frequency root of the geodesic acoustic mode continuum equation in the high Mach number limit. Strong mode drive is observed for large rotation amplitude when the density is peaked in the core. If, on the other hand, density is held constant and the (negative) temperature gradient is increased, a stabilizing effect is observed. In cases where this stabilizes the mode completely, a sufficiently large density gradient can re-excite the mode.
  Citation: Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion
  PubDate: 2025-06-03T23:00:00Z
  DOI: 10.1088/1361-6587/add374
  Issue No: Vol. 67, No. 6 (2025)
Wave penetration and power deposition of helicon current drive for
magnetic fusion plasma with sharp edge gradient
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  Authors: Yiwei Zhang; Lei Chang Guosheng Xu
  First page: 065022
  Abstract: To enhance power absorption efficiency in ion cyclotron resonance heating and lower hybrid current drive systems for advanced tokamaks, this study investigates helicon wave utilization through electromagnetic simulations of wave penetration and power deposition in plasmas with sharp density and temperature gradients. Employing an axisymmetric Maxwell-equation solver electromagnetic solver incorporating cold plasma dielectric tensor, we model tokamak conditions through radial profiles combining uniform core parameters and exponentially decaying edge distributions. The analysis systematically examines wave frequency, profile gradients, and antenna lengths effects on electromagnetic field patterns and power deposition characteristics, incorporating an equivalent collision frequency model to capture Landau damping and related dissipation mechanisms. Simulation results demonstrate that maximum power absorption occurs near the last closed flux surface, primarily governed by Landau damping spatial distribution. A frequency-dependent enhancement of absorbed power emerges, accompanied by undamped zones at larger radii whose spatial extent scales with both wave frequency and plasma gradient magnitude, leading to axial standing wave formation. Extended antenna lengths promote bidirectional wave propagation. Although excluding ionization dynamics and transport processes beyond the immediate scope, these findings establish fundamental insights into helicon wave penetration and power deposition within scrape-Off Layer plasmas. This work provides critical foundations for experimental optimization of radiofrequency heating schemes in high-density tokamak regimes.
  Citation: Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion
  PubDate: 2025-06-03T23:00:00Z
  DOI: 10.1088/1361-6587/adcf4f
  Issue No: Vol. 67, No. 6 (2025)
The new ITER baseline, research plan and open R&D issues
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  Authors: A Loarte; R A Pitts, T Wauters, I Nunes, P de Vries, S H Kim, F Köchl, A Polevoi, M Lehnen, J Artola, S Jachmich, A Pshenov, X Bai, I S Carvalho, M Dubrov, Y Gribov, M Schneider, L Zabeo, X Bonnin, S D Pinches, F Poli, G Suarez Lopez, M Merola, F Escourbiac, R Hunt, L Chen, D Boilson, P Veltri, N Casal, M Preynas, A Mukherjee, W Helou, F Kazarian, S Willms, I Bonnet, R Michling, L Giancarli, J van der Laan, M Walsh, V Udintsev, R Reichle, G Vayakis, A Fossen, M Turnyanskiy, A Becoulet, Y Kamada, G Zhuang, G Xu, X Gong, J Huang, M Jia, R Ding, J Qian, Y Sun, Q Yang, L Zhang, M Xu, L Zhang, S Brezinsek, J Stober, J Hobirk, F Rimini, J Garcia, S L Rao, J Ghosh, D Sharma, B Magesh, R P Bhattacharya, G Matsunaga, H Urano, T Hirose, K Ogawa, G Motojima, C K Sung, H H Lee, J K Park, M S Cheon, Y M Jeon, S Konovalov, S Lebedev, N Kirneva, Y Kashchuk, N Bakharev, X Chen, A Bortolon, L Casali, R Maingi, F Turco, K Schmid, Y Liu, J R Martín-Solís, C Angioni, I Pusztai, D Fajardo, D Mateev, E Lerche, D van Eester, P Vincenzi, R Futtersack, V Bobkov L Colas
  First page: 065023
  Abstract: A new baseline (NB) has been proposed by the ITER Project to ensure a robust achievement of the Projects’ goals, in view of past challenges including delays incurred due to the Covid-19 pandemic, technical challenges in completing first-of-a-kind components and in nuclear licensing. The NB includes modifications to the configuration of the ITER device and its ancillaries (e.g. change from beryllium to tungsten as first wall material, modification of the heating and current drive mix, etc.) as well as additional testing of components (e.g. toroidal field coils) or phased installation (start with inertially cooled first wall before later installation of the final actively water-cooled components) to minimise operational risks. In the NB, the ITER research plan (IRP) will be divided into three main phases: (a) start of research operation, with 40 MW of ECH and 10 MW of ICH, which will focus on the demonstration of 15 MA operation in L-mode, commissioning of all required systems, including disruption mitigation, and the demonstration of H-mode plasma operation in deuterium; (b) DT-1, with 60–67 MW of ECH, 33 MW of neutral beam injection (NBI) and 10–20 MW of ICH, which will demonstrate robust operation in high confinement H-mode plasmas in DT up to Q ⩾ 10 and for burn durations of 300–500 s within an accumulated neutron fluence of ∼1% of the ITER machine’s lifetime total, and; (c) DT-2, with up to 67 MW of ECH, up to 49.5 MW of NBI and up to 20 MW of ICH, with the ITER tokamak and ancillaries in their final configuration to demonstrate routine operation in DT plasmas at high Q and the Q ⩾ 5 long-pulse and steady-state scenarios to the final neutron fluence and to perform R&D on nuclear fusion reactor issues. The logic, physics basis, modelling and experimental evaluations carried out to support the NB and the associated IRP are described. These include the impact of the tungsten wall on plasma scenarios and associated risk mitigation measures, as well as the optimisation of the tokamak components and ancillaries to minimise Project risks. Open R&D issues related to these evaluations and mitigation measures are also described together with experimental, modelling and validation activities required to address them.
  Citation: Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion
  PubDate: 2025-06-04T23:00:00Z
  DOI: 10.1088/1361-6587/add9c9
  Issue No: Vol. 67, No. 6 (2025)
Optimization of compact quasi-axisymmetric stellarators
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  Authors: Tobias M Schuett; Sophia A Henneberg
  First page: 065024
  Abstract: We present the optimization of compact quasi-axisymmetric stellarators with aspect ratio as low as A = 2.4 and varying number of field periods. This previously unexplored optimization space has the striking feature that the symmetry-preserving perturbations remain mostly on the inboard side, and that the axisymmetric volume is large compared to previous designs. Configurations of two, three, and four field periods are presented which feature an average external rotational transform of 0.1, expected to act stabilizing, while obeying quasi-symmetry sufficiently enough to provide confinement to alpha particles at a typical reactor scale. We highlight the impact of different physics constraints on the achievable quasi-symmetry and optimized plasma boundaries, and discuss the trade-offs faced in the choice of the number of field periods.
  Citation: Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion
  PubDate: 2025-06-04T23:00:00Z
  DOI: 10.1088/1361-6587/add598
  Issue No: Vol. 67, No. 6 (2025)
Formation of jets and shocks during plasma beam transport
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  Authors: Yongli Ping; Qian Zhang, Zuolin Ma, Yapeng Zhang Jiayong Zhong
  First page: 065025
  Abstract: This study explores the dynamics and structural evolution of high-density plasma beams as they propagate through a lower-density plasma medium, utilizing relativistic kinetic particle-in-cell simulations. The width of the incident plasma beam governs the morphological evolution of jet structures and shock formation. When the beam width is smaller than the ion skin depth, the reduced electron–ion charge separation leads to insufficient magnetic pressure for shock development. Conversely, when the beam width exceeds the ion skin depth, the enhanced magnetic pressure drives shock formation. Moreover, when the beam width exceeds the ion cyclotron radius, the jet density structures are determined by the beam-width-to-ion-cyclotron-radius ratio through the magnetic field configuration.
  Citation: Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion
  PubDate: 2025-06-04T23:00:00Z
  DOI: 10.1088/1361-6587/addb76
  Issue No: Vol. 67, No. 6 (2025)
Neutral beam integrated efficiency for steady-state operation of a fusion
neutron source design based on a spherical tokamak
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  Authors: Eugenia Dlougach
  First page: 065026
  Abstract: High fusion performance and steady-state plasma operation are the key challenges for designing a compact fusion neutron source based on a spherical tokamak. Steady-state operation will be supported by non-inductive current drive (NBCD) produced by high-energy particles injected by neutral beam injection (NBI). The possibility of NBCD current enhancement and profile control is discussed. The majority of thermonuclear neutrons in the plasma are expected to come from beam–thermal fusion reactions. Overall NBI performance is reduced by the power losses in the injector beamline and by the fast particle losses in the plasma. Optimum fast ion spatial and energy profiles are evaluated for a wide range of NBI-driven plasma scenarios with low-aspect magnetic geometry features accounted for. Combined NBI optimization methodology allows tracking and reducing the fast particle losses throughout the entire beam lifetime—from the accelerated ion extraction at the injector ion source until the final thermalization of particles in plasma. This integrated approach has proved to be highly efficient in time and computing resources. Possible applications of the method are not limited to purposes specific to fusion neutron source devices. It can be applied to enhance NBI gain in magnetically confined plasmas designed for steady-state or long-pulse operation in high-, moderate- or low-aspect-ratio tokamaks.
  Citation: Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion
  PubDate: 2025-06-05T23:00:00Z
  DOI: 10.1088/1361-6587/addc99
  Issue No: Vol. 67, No. 6 (2025)

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