Abstract:The confinement of auxiliary heated NSTX discharges is discussed. The energy confinement time in plasmas with either L-mode or H-mode edges is enhanced over the values given by the ITER97L and ITER98Pby(2) scalings, being up to 2-3 times L-mode and 1.5 times H-mode. TRANSP calculations based on the kinetic profile measurements reproduce the magnetics-based determination of stored energy and the measured neutron production rate. Power balance calculations reveal that, in a high power neutral beam heated H-mode discharge, the ion thermal transport is near neoclassical levels, and well below the electron thermal transport, which is the main loss channel. Perturbative impurity injection techniques indicate the particle diffusivity to be slightly above the neoclassical level in discharges with L-mode edge. High-harmonic fast-wave (HHFW) bulk electron heating is described and thermal transport is discussed. Thermal ion transport is found to be above neoclassical level, but thermal electron transport remains the main loss mechanism. Evidences of an electron thermal internal transport barrier obtained with HHFW heating are presented. A description of H-mode discharges obtained during HHFW heating is presented.

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Ion absorption of the high harmonic fast wave in a spherical torus [Y.-K. M. Peng et al., Nucl. Fusion 26, 769 (1986)] is of critical importance to assessing the viability of the wave as a means of heating and driving current. Analysis of recent National Spherical Torus Experiment [M. Ono et al., Nucl. Fusion 40, 557 (2000)] shots has revealed that under some conditions when neutral beam and rf power are injected into the plasma simultaneously, a fast ion population with energy above the beam injection energy is sustained by the wave. In agreement with modeling, these experiments find the rf-induced fast ion tail strength and neutron rate at lower B-fields to be less enhanced, likely due to a larger β profile, which promotes greater off-axis absorption where the fast ion population is small. Ion loss codes find the increased loss fraction with decreased B insufficient to account for the changes in tail strength, providing further evidence that this is a rf interaction effect. Though greater ion absorption is predicted with lower k∥, surprisingly little variation in the tail was observed, along with a neutron rate enhancement with higher k∥. Data from the neutral particle analyzer, neutron detectors, x-ray crystal spectrometer, and Thomson scattering are presented, along with results from the TRANSP [R. J. Hawryluk, Physics of Plasmas Close to Thermonuclear Conditions 1, 19 (1981); J. P. H. E. Ongena et al., Fusion Technol. 33, 181 (1998)] transport analysis code, ray-tracing codes HPRT [J. Menard et al., Phys. Plasmas 6, 2002 (1999)], and CURRAY [T. K. Mau et al., RF Power in Plasmas: 13th Topical Conference (1999), p. 148], full-wave code AORSA [E. F. Jaeger et al., RF Power in Plasmas: 14th Topical Conference, 2001, p. 369], quasilinear code CQL3D [R. W. Harvey et al., in Proceedings of the IAEA TCM on Advances in Simulation and Modeling of Thermonuclear Plasmas, 1992], and ion loss codes EIGOL [D. S. Darrow et al., in Proceedings of the 6th IAEA TCM on Energetic Particles in Magnetic Confinement Systems, 2000, p. 109] and CONBEAM [J. Egedal et al., Phys. Plasmas 10, 2372 (2003)].

High Harmonic Fast Wave (HHFW) Heating has been proposed as a particularly attractive means for plasma heating and current drive in the high beta plasmas that are achievable in spherical torus (ST) devices. The National Spherical Torus Experiment (NSTX) [Ono, M., Kaye, S.M., Neumeyer, S., et al., Proceedings, 18 th IEEE/NPSS Symposium On Fusion Engineering, Albuquerque, 1999, (IEEE, Piscataway, NJ (1999.] is such a device. An rf heating system has been installed on NSTX to explore the physics of HHFW heating, current drive via rf waves and for use as a tool to demonstrate the attractiveness of the ST concept as a fusion device. To date, experiments have demonstrated many of the theoretical predictions for HHFW. In particular, strong wave absorption on electrons over a wide range of plasma parameters and wave parallel phase velocities, wave acceleration of energetic ions, and indications of current drive for directed wave spectra have been observed. In addition HHFW heating has been used to explore the energy transport properties of NSTX plasmas, to create H-mode discharges with a large fraction of bootstrap current and to control the plasma current profile during the early stages of the discharge.