Confinement Efficiency and Stability of a Toroidal Magnetized Plasma Device with Sheared Magnetic Field Lines using an Internal Ring Conductor

TL;DR

This study investigates a new toroidal plasma device with an internal ring conductor, demonstrating improved confinement efficiency and turbulence suppression through sheared magnetic field lines, with results aligning with neoclassical diffusion predictions.

Contribution

It introduces a novel toroidal plasma device with an internal ring conductor and analyzes how sheared magnetic fields enhance confinement and stability.

Findings

Enhanced plasma density with poloidal magnetic field

Suppression of turbulence and instabilities with magnetic shear

Confinement times consistent with neoclassical diffusion models

Abstract

In a new toroidal laboratory plasma device including a poloidal magnetic field created by an internal circular conductor, the confinement efficiency of the magnetized plasma and the turbulence level are studied in different situations. The plasma density is greatly enhanced when a sufficient poloidal magnetic field is established. Moreover, the instabilities and the turbulence usually found in toroidal devices without shear of the magnetic field lines are suppressed when the rotational transform is present. The measurement of the plasma decay time allows to determine the confinement time of the particles which is compared to the Bohm diffusion time and to the value predicted by different diffusion models, especially the neoclassical diffusion.