Full-wave Simulations of ICRF Heating in Toroidal Plasma with Non-Maxwellian Distribution Functions in the FLR Limit

摘要

The injection of waves in the ion cyclotron frequency range is a well-established method of heating and driving current in magnetically conned toroidal plasma. A straightforward estimate suggests that, at rf power levels which are suciently high that nite enhancements in temperature or current are achieved, the ion velocity distribution functions are expected to be significantly modied from a thermal, Maxwellian shape. Since the absorption of energy and momentum are overwhelmingly through collisionless wave-particle interactions, local in velocity space, these distribution function modications will, generally, result in nite changes in the amount and spatial location of absorption. Inclusion of these modications, ultimately computed self-consistently together with the wave elds, is required to to more faithfully model experimental results and to more accurately design future devices.