First observation of RMP ELM mitigation on MAST Upgrade

The first experimental attempts at controlling edge localised modes (ELMs) via the application of resonant magnetic perturbations on the MAST Upgrade tokamak are reported. Using the linear MHD model MARS-F, the phase shift between the upper and lower coil rows ∆Φ was optimised for toroidal mode numb...

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Bibliographic Details
Authors: Ryan, DA, Ham, C. J., Kirk, A., Markovic, T, Munaretto, S., Piron, L, Viezzer, Eleonora, Willensdorfer, M.
Format: article
Status:Published version
Publication Date:2024
Country:España
Institution:Universidad de Sevilla (US)
Repository:idUS. Depósito de Investigación de la Universidad de Sevilla
OAI Identifier:oai:idus.us.es:11441/168536
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/11441/168536
https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-6587/ad6d53
Access Level:Open access
Keyword:rror field
edge localised mode
resonant magnetic perturbation
ELM control
ELM mitigation
Description
Summary:The first experimental attempts at controlling edge localised modes (ELMs) via the application of resonant magnetic perturbations on the MAST Upgrade tokamak are reported. Using the linear MHD model MARS-F, the phase shift between the upper and lower coil rows ∆Φ was optimised for toroidal mode number n = 1 and n = 2 fields, to provide forward guidance to experiments. In low βN discharges, the application of n = 1 3D fields caused the ELM frequency fELM to increase by over a factor 20 relative to the reference, and also induced a locked mode, which did not cause a plasma termination nor an H-L back transition. However when βN was raised, this induced locked mode caused plasma termination which precluded mitigation access. Initially, applying a numerically optimised n = 2 field had no effect. However applying a rigid toroidal shift to this field caused a locked mode disruption, demonstrating the presence of a substantial n = 2 error field. Coil current ramps were conducted with ∆Φ set at 6 different values, resulting in either locked mode disruptions or no effect, but mitigation with n = 2 fields was not established