Blob velocities and sizes in the Alcator C-Mod scrape-off layer for ohmic and high confinement mode plasmas

TL;DR

This study measures and compares blob velocities and sizes in the scrape-off layer of Alcator C-Mod plasmas across different confinement modes, revealing similar blob dynamics in ohmic and high confinement conditions.

Contribution

It introduces an improved time delay estimation method and interprets blob dynamics using a stochastic model across multiple plasma confinement modes.

Findings

Blob velocities range from 400 to 1000 m/s.

Blob sizes and velocities are similar in ohmic and H-mode plasmas.

Blob dynamics are consistent across different confinement modes.

Abstract

An improved time delay estimation method is used to calculate the velocity of cross-field blob motion in the scrape-off layer of Alcator C-Mod for an ohmic and two high confinement (H-mode) plasmas; an edge localized mode free and an enhanced D-alpha H-mode. The gas puff imaging data analysis results are interpreted in the framework of a stochastic model that describes the fluctuations as a super-position of uncorrelated blob-like structures. In all confinement modes investigated, the scrape-off layer is dominated by large amplitude, blob-like filaments moving radially outwards with velocities in the range from 400 to 1000 m/s. Blobs in high confinement mode plasmas have similar velocities and sizes as in ohmic plasma, which is consistent with the close similarity of conditionally averaged burst shapes and frequency spectra for the confinement modes investigated.