Theory of plasma transport in toroidal confinement systems

Theory of plasma transport in toroidal confinement systems

April 1976 | F. L. Hinton and R. D. Hazeltine
The theory of plasma transport in toroidal confinement systems explores how particles, energy, and electric charge move in a hot, magnetically confined plasma. Coulomb-collisional scattering provides an irreducible minimum for transport processes, and the Fokker–Planck equation describes this dissipation. Transport coefficients, which relate fluxes to density and temperature gradients, are crucial for understanding plasma confinement in fusion devices. In magnetized plasmas, transport coefficients are nonlocal and depend on magnetic field geometry, especially when the collisional mean free path is much longer than gradient scale lengths. Neoclassical transport theory, developed over the last decade, is particularly relevant for high-temperature thermonuclear reactors, as it accounts for nonlocality and geometry dependence. The review emphasizes neoclassical theory, which applies to axisymmetric tokamak-type systems, and discusses transport in both classical and collision-dominated regimes. It covers transport coefficients, collision operators, conservation laws, and the role of magnetic field geometry. The review also addresses the transition between different collisionality regimes and provides expressions for transport coefficients in various plasma conditions. The analysis includes the effects of particle trapping, drifts, and the influence of magnetic field curvature on transport. The results highlight the importance of neoclassical transport in understanding plasma behavior in toroidal confinement systems.The theory of plasma transport in toroidal confinement systems explores how particles, energy, and electric charge move in a hot, magnetically confined plasma. Coulomb-collisional scattering provides an irreducible minimum for transport processes, and the Fokker–Planck equation describes this dissipation. Transport coefficients, which relate fluxes to density and temperature gradients, are crucial for understanding plasma confinement in fusion devices. In magnetized plasmas, transport coefficients are nonlocal and depend on magnetic field geometry, especially when the collisional mean free path is much longer than gradient scale lengths. Neoclassical transport theory, developed over the last decade, is particularly relevant for high-temperature thermonuclear reactors, as it accounts for nonlocality and geometry dependence. The review emphasizes neoclassical theory, which applies to axisymmetric tokamak-type systems, and discusses transport in both classical and collision-dominated regimes. It covers transport coefficients, collision operators, conservation laws, and the role of magnetic field geometry. The review also addresses the transition between different collisionality regimes and provides expressions for transport coefficients in various plasma conditions. The analysis includes the effects of particle trapping, drifts, and the influence of magnetic field curvature on transport. The results highlight the importance of neoclassical transport in understanding plasma behavior in toroidal confinement systems.
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