Continuous improvement of H-mode discharge performance with progressively increasing lithium coatings in the National Spherical Torus Experiment

Lithium wall coatings have been shown to reduce recycling, improve energy confinement, and suppress edge localized modes in the National Spherical Torus Experiment. Here, we show that these effects depend continuously on the amount of predischarge lithium evaporation. We observed a nearly monotonic reduction in recycling, decrease in electron transport, and modification of the edge profiles and stability with increasing lithium. These correlations challenge basic expectations, given that even the smallest coatings exceeded that needed for a nominal thickness of the order of the implantation range.     

Electromagnetic transport from microtearing mode turbulence

This Letter presents nonlinear gyrokinetic simulations of microtearing mode turbulence. The simulations include collisional and electromagnetic effects and use experimental parameters from a high-β discharge in the National Spherical Torus Experiment. The predicted electron thermal transport is comparable to that given by experimental analysis, and it is dominated by the electromagnetic contribution of electrons free-streaming along the resulting stochastic magnetic field line trajectories. Experimental values of flow shear can significantly reduce the predicted transport.     

Application of weakly ionized plasmas for materials sampling andanalysis

The use of weakly ionized plasmas as spectroscopic sources for materials sampling and analysis is reviewed. Plasma sources currently used for this purpose include direct-current and alternating-current plasmas, inductively coupled plasmas, microwave-induced plasmas, surface-wave plasmas, capacitively coupled plasmas, capacitive microwave plasmas, glow discharges, flowing afterglows, theta pinch discharges, exploding films and wires, and laser-produced plasmas. The authors give a summary of relevant characteristics of some of the plasma sources. Included are the source, common method of application, approximate detection limit for that method, applicability for solid sampling, susceptibility to matrix effects, approximate cost, and the most common usage for the method     

Spiral Anchoring in Media with Multiple Inhomogeneities: A Dynamical System Approach

The spiral is one of nature’s more ubiquitous shapes: It can be seen in various media, from galactic geometry to cardiac tissue. Mathematically, spiral waves arise as solutions to reaction–diffusion partial differential equations (RDS). In the literature, various experimentally observed dynamical states and bifurcations of spiral waves have been explained using the underlying Euclidean symmetry of the RDS—see for example (Barkley in Phys. Rev. Lett. 68:2090–2093, 1992; Phys. Rev. Lett. 76:164–167, 1994; Sandstede et al. in C. R. Acad. Sci. 324:153–158, 1997; J. Differ. Equ. 141:122–149, 1997; J. Nonlinear Sci. 9:439–478, 1999), or additionally using the concept of forced Euclidean symmetry-breaking for situations where an inhomogeneity or anisotropy is present—see (LeBlanc in Nonlinearity 15:1179–1203, 2002; LeBlanc and Wulff in J. Nonlinear Sci. 10:569–601, 2000). In this paper, we further investigate the role of medium inhomogeneities on spiral wave dynamics by considering the effects of several localized sites of inhomogeneity. Using a model-independent approach based on n>1 simultaneous translational symmetry-breaking perturbations of the dynamics near rotating waves, we fully characterize the local anchoring behavior of the spiral wave in the n-dimensional parameter space of relative “amplitudes” of the individual perturbations. For the case n=2, we supplement the local anchoring results with a classification of the generic one-parameter bifurcation diagrams of anchored states which can be obtained by circling the origin of the two-dimensional amplitude parameter space. Numerical examples are given to illustrate our various results.     

Suppression of electron temperature gradient turbulence via negative magnetic shear in NSTX

Negative magnetic shear is found to suppress electron turbulence and improve electron thermal transport for plasmas in the National Spherical Torus Experiment (NSTX). Sufficiently negative magnetic shear results in a transition out of a stiff profile regime. Density fluctuation measurements from high-k microwave scattering are verified to be the electron temperature gradient (ETG) mode by matching measured rest frequency and linear growth rate to gyrokinetic calculations. Fluctuation suppression under negligible E×B shear conditions confirm that negative magnetic shear alone is sufficient for ETG suppression. Measured electron temperature gradients can significantly exceed ETG critical gradients with ETG mode activity reduced to intermittent bursts, while electron thermal diffusivity improves to below 0.1?electron gyro-Bohms.     

The kinetic limitation of anti-stokes luminescence of Er3+ and Yb3+ doped infrared upconversion materials

Infrared-to-visible wave-length conversion in the Yb³⁺−Er³⁺ doped phosphors system has been described by a simple three level model based on two ions mechanism. The excitation in the range of 900–1000 nm of an IR-photon is first absorbed by Yb³⁺ ion as a sensitizer attributed to the resonant energy transition in Er³⁺ ion from ⁴ I _3/2 → ⁴ S _15/2 and ¹ F _9/2 → ⁴ I _15/2, respectively for green and red emission. The essential energy transfer processes in this system i.e. upconversion from ⁴ I _11/2 and ¹ I _13/2, cross-relaxation from ⁴ S _3/2 and ¹ F _9/2 are taken into account. The limitations of the rate-equation approach are examined with a focus on the underlying dynamics of this rare-earth system.     

Observation of compressional Alfvén modes during neutral-beam heating on the national spherical torus experiment

Neutral-beam-driven compressional Alfvén eigenmodes at frequencies below the ion cyclotron frequency have been observed and identified for the first time in the National Spherical Torus Experiment. The modes are observed as a broad spectrum of nearly equally spaced peaks in the frequency range from approximately 0.2omega(ci) to approximately 1.2omega(ci). The frequency has a scaling with toroidal field and plasma density consistent with Alfvén waves. The modes have been observed with high bandwidth magnetic pickup coils and with a reflectometer.     

Reactions of some nitrofluoroaromatics with the methanethiolate anion

Previous studies on the reactions of simple fluoroaromatics, C₆F_xH_6?x′ with sodium methanethiolate in an ethylene glycol/pyridine solvent mixture have shown that at least two fluorine atoms remained C₆F₅H + SMe^? → C₆F₂H(SMe)₂ on the aromatic ring. When the reactions of simple nitrofluoroaromatics, C₆F_xH_yNO₂ were studied under the same conditions stepwise replacement of all the aromatic fluorines was observed. This clearly demonstrates the activating effect of the nitro group in these reactions, and is in marked contrast to the deactivating effect of the amino group observed previously in analogous reactions of the fluoroaniline. Details of these reactions will be discussed. In one case the expected substitution was not observed and an azoxybenzene was formed.

The methylthio group can readily be oxidized, but

simple reduction of the nitrogroup to an amino group was not feasible.All the new compounds isolated have been characterized by chemical analysis and mass spectroscopy. The structures have been determined by NMR spectroscopy usually proton and/or fluorine, but in cases of ambiguity the carbon-13 spectra have also been examined.