Plasma Physics For Controlled Fusion

Resulting from ongoing, international research into fusion processes, the International Tokamak Experimental Reactor (ITER) is a major step in the quest for a new energy source.The first graduate-level text to cover the details of ITER, Controlled Fusion and Plasma Physics introduces various aspects and issues of recent fusion research activ

TO THE SECOND EDITION In the nine years since this book was first written, rapid progress has been made scientifically in nuclear fusion, space physics, and nonlinear plasma theory. At the same time, the energy shortage on the one hand and the exploration of Jupiter and Saturn on the other have increased the national awareness of the important applications of plasma physics to energy production and to the understanding of our space environment. In magnetic confinement fusion, this period has seen the attainment 13 of a Lawson number nTE of 2 x 10 cm -3 sec in the Alcator tokamaks at MIT; neutral-beam heating of the PL T tokamak at Princeton to KTi = 6. 5 keV; increase of average ß to 3%-5% in tokamaks at Oak Ridge and General Atomic; and the stabilization of mirror-confined plasmas at Livermore, together with injection of ion current to near field-reversal conditions in the 2XIIß device. Invention of the tandem mirror has given magnetic confinement a new and exciting dimension. New ideas have emerged, such as the compact torus, surface-field devices, and the EßT mirror-torus hybrid, and some old ideas, such as the stellarator and the reversed-field pinch, have been revived. Radiofrequency heat ing has become a new star with its promise of dc current drive. Perhaps most importantly, great progress has been made in the understanding of the MHD behavior of toroidal plasmas: tearing modes, magnetic Vll Vlll islands, and disruptions.

There has been an increase in interest worldwide in fusion research over the last decade and a half due to the recognition that a large number of new, environmentally attractive, sustainable energy sources will be needed to meet ever increasing demand for electrical energy. Based on a series of course notes from graduate courses in plasma physics and fusion energy at MIT, the text begins with an overview of world energy needs, current methods of energy generation, and the potential role that fusion may play in the future. It covers energy issues such as the production of fusion power, power balance, the design of a simple fusion reactor and the basic plasma physics issues faced by the developers of fusion power. This book is suitable for graduate students and researchers working in applied physics and nuclear engineering. A large number of problems accumulated over two decades of teaching are included to aid understanding.

The primary objectives of this book are, firstly, to present the essential theoretical background needed to understand recent fusion research and, secondly, to describe the current status of fusion research for graduate students and senior undergraduates. It will also serve as a useful reference for scientists and engineers working in the related fields. In Part I, Plasma Physics, the author explains the basics of magneto-hydrodynamics and kinetic theory in a simple and compact way and, at the same time, covers important new topics for fusion studies such as the ballooning representation, instabilities driven by energetic particles, and various plasma models for computer simulations. Part II, Controlled Nuclear Fusion, attempts to review the "big picture" in fusion research. Mathematical derivations are comprehensively explained to better enable readers to later concentrate on the physics. All important phenomena and technologies are addressed, with a particular emphasis on the topics of most concern in current research.

The original English-language edition of this work appeared in 1979. Since then researchers around the world have made slow but steady progress toward the realization of sustained, controlled nuclear fusion. This new edition has been updated to review the important contributions of the past decade. The final chapter, "Confinement of High-Temperature Plasmas, " has been rewritten entirely to include the recent results of confinement in several types of devices and advances the under standing of wave heating. Miyamoto's approach is unique in encompassing Western, Soviet, and Japanese research in the fusion field. The book's 16 chapters are grouped into four major subject areas. Chapters in the first part develop the fundamentals of plasma physics and present the conditions of nuclear fusion reactions; those in the next two parts provide a magnetohydrodynamic description of plasmas and explain wave phenomena and instabilities by means of a kinetic model. Concluding chapters take up the problems of heating, diagnostics, and confinement. Specific topics include the Lawson condition; Boltzmann and Vlasov equations; plasma equilibrium; magnetohydrodynamic instabilities; waves in cold and hot plasmas; microinstabilities; fast neutral beam injection and wave heating; and diagnostics using microwaves, lasers, and energy analyzers. Plasma confinement in tokamaks and stellarators, multipole fields, mirrors, and cusps, as well as inertial confinement, are reviewed. Kenro Miyamoto, is Professor of Physics at the University of Tokyo.

Controlled thermonuclear fusion is one of the possible candidates for long term energy sources which will be indispensable for our highly technological society. However, the physics and technology of controlled fusion are extremely complex and still require a great deal of research and development before fusion can be a practical energy source. For producing energy via controlled fusion a deuterium-tritium gas has to be heated to temperatures of a few 100 Million °c corres ponding to about 10 keV. For net energy gain, this hot plasma has to be confined at a certain density for a certain time One pro mising scheme to confine such a plasma is the use of i~tense mag netic fields. However, the plasma diffuses out of the confining magnetic surfaces and impinges on the surrounding vessel walls which isolate the plasma from the surrounding air. Because of this plasma wall interaction, particles from the plasma are lost to the walls by implantation and are partially reemitted into the plasma. In addition, wall atoms are released and can enter the plasma. These wall atoms or impurities can deteriorate the plasma performance due to enhanced energy losses through radiation and an increase of the required magnetic pressure or a dilution of the fuel in the plasma. Finally, the impact of the plasma and energy on the wall can modify and deteriorate the thermal and mechanical pro perties of the vessel walls.

This complete introduction to plasma physics and controlled fusion by one of the pioneering scientists in this expanding field offers both a simple and intuitive discussion of the basic concepts of this subject and an insight into the challenging problems of current research. In a wholly lucid manner the work covers single-particle motions, fluid equations for plasmas, wave motions, diffusion and resistivity, Landau damping, plasma instabilities and nonlinear problems. For students, this outstanding text offers a painless introduction to this important field; for teachers, a large collection of problems; and for researchers, a concise review of the fundamentals as well as original treatments of a number of topics never before explained so clearly. This revised edition contains new material on kinetic effects, including Bernstein waves and the plasma dispersion function, and on nonlinear wave equations and solitons. For the third edition, updates was made throughout each existing chapter, and two new chapters were added; Ch 9 on “Special Plasmas” and Ch 10 on Plasma Applications (including Atmospheric Plasmas).