Speaker
Prof.
Aleksandr Burdakov
(Budker Institute of Nuclear Physics)
Description
A fusion reactor concept on the basis of a linear trap is developing in BINP. These studies incorporate multiple-mirror sections which should reduce significantly longitudinal plasma losses from a confinement zone as an important element of a central trap. The most efficient operation regime of multiple-mirror sections is at the mean free path of ions approximately equal to the length of an individual mirror cell. Transition to such mode of the improved confinement, in particular in the conditions of appearance of plasma turbulence, is the task that requires more research.
In the paper the main physical findings on the multiple-mirror confinement useful for forecast of the plasma behavior at reactor conditions will be discussed. Basic results were received on the GOL-3 multiple-mirror trap in which plasma of $10^{21}$ $m^{-3}$ density was heated by a high-power electron beam up to 2 – 4 keV temperature. The key milestones were: the demonstration of effective plasma heating by the electron beam due to collective effects, the achievement of theoretically predicted level of energy confinement time under optimal conditions, and finally, the discovery of a bounce instability that improves longitudinal confinement.
Modern projects of high-performance open traps with a central confinement zone and multiple-mirror end sections (like the GDMT project) require more experimental information for performance prediction of the multiple-mirrors for plasmas with low level of turbulence. Direct demonstration of a confinement improvement by multi-mirror sections in the magnetic configuration relevant to the reactor one is required. For this purpose, the GOL-NB facility will be created in BIMP. The main tasks of GOL-NB and the progress in its construction will be discussed. In addition, a new plasma device SMOLA with a helical multiple-mirror magnetic field which should check an idea of an active confinement control is announced.
Primary author
Prof.
Aleksandr Burdakov
(Budker Institute of Nuclear Physics)
Co-author
Dr
Vladimir Postupaev
(Budker Institute of Nuclear Physics)
Peer reviewing
Paper
Paper files:
