Small footprint phase locking system for large tiled aperture laser array

International audienceA phase sensing system fitted to the control of coherent laser beam array of large cross section is experimented. It is based on the use of a fiber bundle that collects a weak part of the synthetic wavefront, that scales it down (1/40) and that reshapes it in a more compact arrangement (2D to 1D array). Then, the reconfigured beam array can be analyzed by a small footprint system making the large laser beam array easier to phase-lock. The discrete laser array wavefront transmitted by the meter long fiber bundle was stabilized thanks to a multiple arm servo loop. Laser array phase locking was further ensured by random scattering through a diffuser, associated to an alternating projection algorithm. Six fiber laser beams constituting a 110 mm diameter synthetic aperture, were phase-locked with lambda/16 accuracy

Characterization of hydrocarbon and mixed layers in TEXTOR by laser induced ablation spectroscopy

Laser-based methods are investigated for the development of an in situ diagnostic for spatially and temporally resolved characterization of the first wall in fusion devices. Here we report on the first systematic laser-induced ablation spectroscopy (LIAS) measurements carried out on various surface layers in the TEXTOR tokamak. These materials include a-C: D, mixed W/C/Al/D-2, Oerlikon Balzers 'Balinit' diamond-like carbon layers and EK98 fine-grain graphite. In LIAS, the bulk or deposited material is evaporated during the plasma discharge by intense laser radiation. The light emitted by particles entering the edge of the ionizing tokamak plasma is then observed by optical spectroscopy. In the measurements taken, it was found that the studied layers can be identified by their characteristic line emission. A good correlation between the observed line intensity and layer thickness is found. The observed plumes show target material dependence. To analyze layers formed during tokamak operation, further investigation of the ablation process and reference materials for cross calibration is required

Scaling of carbon erosion in Tore Supra

The scaling law for carbon erosion in Tore Supra previously established by Hogan et al. [1] (Phi(C)(C/s) = 5 x 10(20) P-cond (MW), where P-cond is the conducted power) is revisited both from the experimental and the modelling point of view. New developments with the EIRENE code, that allow relating measured CII emission intensities to the total amount of carbon sputtered from the Toroidal Pumped Limiter, are presented. Recent measurements carried out at high input power show a good agreement with the database used to establish the scaling law. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Contribution of Tore Supra in preparation of ITER

Tore Supra routinely addresses the physics and technology of very long-duration plasma discharges, thus bringing precious information on critical issues of long pulse operation of ITER. A new ITER relevant lower hybrid current drive (LHCD) launcher has allowed coupling to the plasma a power level of 2.7 MW for 78 s, corresponding to a power density close to the design value foreseen for an ITER LHCD system. In accordance with the expectations, long distance (10 cm) power coupling has been obtained. Successive stationary states of the plasma current profile have been controlled in real-time featuring (i) control of sawteeth with varying plasma parameters, (ii) obtaining and sustaining a 'hot core' plasma regime, (iii) recovery from a voluntarily triggered deleterious magnetohydrodynamic regime. The scrape-off layer (SOL) parameters and power deposition have been documented during L-mode ramp-up phase, a crucial point for ITER before the X-point formation. Disruption mitigation studies have been conducted with massive gas injection, evidencing the difference between He and Ar and the possible role of the q = 2 surface in limiting the gas penetration. ICRF assisted wall conditioning in the presence of magnetic field has been investigated, culminating in the demonstration that this conditioning scheme allows one to recover normal operation after disruptions. The effect of the magnetic field ripple on the intrinsic plasma rotation has been studied, showing the competition between turbulent transport processes and ripple toroidal friction. During dedicated dimensionless experiments, the effect of varying the collisionality on turbulence wavenumber spectra has been documented, giving new insight into the turbulence mechanism. Turbulence measurements have also allowed quantitatively comparing experimental results with predictions by 5D gyrokinetic codes: numerical results simultaneously match the magnitude of effective heat diffusivity, rms values of density fluctuations and wavenumber spectra. A clear correlation between electron temperature gradient and impurity transport in the very core of the plasma has been observed, strongly suggesting the existence of a threshold above which transport is dominated by turbulent electron modes. Dynamics of edge turbulent fluctuations has been studied by correlating data from fast imaging cameras and Langmuir probes, yielding a coherent picture of transport processes involved in the SOL. Corrections were made to this article on 6 January 2012. Some of the letters in the text were missing