How can the combination of two techniques lead us toward a more sustainable future with a reduced dependency on fossil fuels?Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory have successfully simulated a novel combination method for managing fusion plasma, showing how the two united methods offer more flexibility.
A device known as a tokamak uses magnetic fields to contain the plasma in a donut shape, but the ELMs can lead to the end of the reaction, potentially damaging the device in the process. “The best way we’ve found to avoid them is by applying resonant magnetic perturbations,” said Alessandro Bortolon.The magnetic fields initially applied by the tokamak move around the torus-shaped plasma like a rope.
Creating resonant magnetic perturbations big enough to develop the desired magnetic islands in the plasma is a challenge. That is where the ECCD steps in with microwave beams. They act as a special ingredient that lowers the current needed to generate the RMPs necessary to make the islands. In other words, they make the process more controllable and also perfect the size of the islands for maximum plasma edge stability.