Plasma Core Physics

The research group investigates and optimises the current and pressure profiles in the plasma core to improve the confinement and stability of Tokamak plasmas.
 

The energy-releasing fusion of hydrogen mainly takes place in the core of a fusion plasma. Therefore, maintaining the high central temperature and density consistently represents a crucial objective. In this process, it is important to avoid deleterious instabilities and to keep plasma transport at a low level in order to preserve the high insulation capability of the magnetic field cage. Achieving these goals optimally in a Tokamak can be ensured through targeted manipulation of the plasma current and its distribution within the plasma. However, the plasma pressure profiles influence the current profiles, making the establishment of a stable current distribution a complex task. In addition to current distribution, plasma density also plays an important role here.

In the group “Plasma Core Physics”, both the current distribution and the density of the plasma are measured using various methods in order to carry out the optimisation described above. In addition, the influence of the plasma edge on the centre is investigated, as well as how the plasma density influences various processes in the entire plasma.