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research article

Modification of the Alfven wave spectrum by pellet injection

Oliver, H. J. C.
•
Sharapov, S. E.
•
Breizman, B. N.
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October 1, 2019
Nuclear Fusion

Alfven eigenmodes driven by energetic particles are routinely observed in tokamak plasmas. These modes consist of poloidal harmonics of shear Alfven waves coupled by inhomogeneity in the magnetic field. Further coupling is introduced by 3D inhomogeneities in the ion density during the assimilation of injected pellets. This additional coupling modifies the Alfven continuum and discrete eigenmode spectrum. The frequencies of Alfven eigenmodes drop dramatically when a pellet is injected in JET. From these observations, information about the changes in the ion density caused by a pellet can be inferred. To use Alfven eigenmodes for MHD spectroscopy of pellet injected plasmas, the 3D MILD codes Stellgap and AE3D were generalised to incorporate 3D density profiles. A model for the expansion of the ionised pellet plasmoid along a magnetic field line was derived from the fluid equations. Thereby, the time evolution of the Alfven eigenfrequency is reproduced. By comparing the numerical frequency drop of a toroidal Alfven eigenmode (TAE) to experimental observations, the initial ion density of a cigar-shaped ablation region of length 4cm is estimated to be n() = 6.8 x 10(22) m(-3) at the TAE location (r/a approximate to 0.75). The frequency sweeping of an Alfven eigenmode ends when the ion density homogenises poloidally. Modelling suggests that the time for poloidal homogenisation of the ion density at the TAE position is tau(h) = 18 +/- 4 ms for inboard pellet injection, and tau(h) = 26 +/- 2 ms for outboard pellet injection. By reproducing the frequency evolution of the elliptical Alfven eigemnode (EAE), the initial ion density at the EAE location (r/a approximate to 0.9) can be estimated to be n() = 4.8 x 10(22) m(-3). Poloidal homogenisation of the ion density takes 2.7 times longer at the EAE location than at the TAE location for both inboard and outboard pellet injection.

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Type
research article
DOI
10.1088/1741-4326/ab382b
Web of Science ID

WOS:000484508000001

Author(s)
Oliver, H. J. C.
Sharapov, S. E.
Breizman, B. N.
Fontanilla, A. K.
Spong, D. A.
Terranova, D.
Abduallev, S.
Abhangi, M.
Abreu, P.
Afanasev, V
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Date Issued

2019-10-01

Publisher

IOP Publishing Ltd

Published in
Nuclear Fusion
Volume

59

Issue

10

Article Number

106031

Subjects

Physics, Fluids & Plasmas

•

Physics

•

mhd spectroscopy

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alfven eigenmodes

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pellet injection

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plasma

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eigenmode

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ablation

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parameters

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excitation

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continuum

Editorial or Peer reviewed

REVIEWED

Written at

EPFL

EPFL units
SPC  
Available on Infoscience
November 6, 2019
Use this identifier to reference this record
https://infoscience.epfl.ch/handle/20.500.14299/162729
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