Fluctuation statistics in the scrape-off layer of Alcator C-Mod
We study long time series of the ion saturation current and floating potential, sampled by Langmuir probes dwelled in the outboard mid-plane scrape-off layer and embedded in the lower divertor baffle of Alcator C-Mod. A series of ohmically heated L-mode plasma discharges is investigated with line-av...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Other Authors: | |
| Format: | Article |
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IOP Publishing
2018
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/113072 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7841-9261 |
| Summary: | We study long time series of the ion saturation current and floating potential, sampled by Langmuir probes dwelled in the outboard mid-plane scrape-off layer and embedded in the lower divertor baffle of Alcator C-Mod. A series of ohmically heated L-mode plasma discharges is investigated with line-averaged plasma density ranging from to 0.42, where n G is the Greenwald density. All ion saturation current time series that are sampled in the far scrape-off layer are characterized by large-amplitude burst events. Coefficients of skewness and excess kurtosis of the time series obey a quadratic relationship and their histograms coincide partially upon proper normalization. Histograms of the ion saturation current time series are found to agree well with a prediction of a stochastic model for the particle density fluctuations in scrape-off layer plasmas. The distribution of the waiting times between successive large-amplitude burst events and of the burst amplitudes are approximately described by exponential distributions. The average waiting time and burst amplitude are found to vary weakly with the line-averaged plasma density. Conditional averaging reveals that the radial blob velocity, estimated from floating potential measurements, increases with the normalized burst amplitude in the outboard mid-plane scrape-off layer. For low density discharges, the conditionally averaged waveform of the floating potential associated with large amplitude bursts at the divertor probes has a dipolar shape. In detached divertor conditions the average waveform is random, indicating electrical disconnection of blobs from the sheaths at the divertor targets. |
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