A real time instantaneous frequency estimator for rotating magneticislands in a tokamak thermonuclear plasma

摘要

The evolution of rotating magnetic islands is a limit for theregime of stable operation in tokamak plasma confinement systems fornuclear fusion research, working close to operating conditions requiredin a future reactor. It is possible to counteract the growth of themagnetic islands by applying an external magnetic field, provided thatthe rotating speed of the magnetic islands is measured. The rotatingspeed can be determined from the measurement of the frequency of theelectromotive force induced on a set of magnetic detectors. This paperproposes a digital method for the estimation of this frequency. Theresults of some laboratory tests performed on a prototype device of theestimator are reported