2007 Physics and Theoretical Physics Professor, Department of Plasma at Novosibirsk State University Physics at Novosibirsk State University SCIENCE First Hand, V
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PHYSICS OF PLASMA TRAPFOR FUSIONA.A. SHOSHIN, A.V. ANIKEEV Like all research institutes of the Siberian Branch Plasma is mysterious matter possessing lasma is a completely or partly ionized gas in which century, the main direction of research has been focused of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Budker the property of self-organization the total negative charge of particles equals the total upon controlled nuclear fusion with the aim of fusion power Institute of Nuclear Physics (INP) is comparatively positive charge. Plasma, therefore, is an electrically release for the production of electricity. High-temperature young: it will celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2008, P neutral medium. As physicists say, plasma possesses plasmoids are frequently encountered in the universe: it and 50 is also the mean age of its workers. It is re- the property of quasi-neutrality. This state of matter is suffices to name the sun and the stars, while on the Earth assuring to see that now many graduate students considered to be the fourth aggregate state (in addition to one can find only a small amount of plasma. Space particles and undergraduates are working at the INP, and solid, liquid, and gaseous states) and is the natural form of and the solar wind ionize the upper layer of the atmospheric that these young scientists are planning to continue existence at temperatures of about 10,000 °C and higher. shell of the Earth (ionosphere), and the formed plasma is research at this institute. It is well known that young This unusual state of matter in nature has been studied confined by the magnetic field of the Earth. In other words, people tend to join organizations that offer interest- for more than a century. Since the second half of the 20th this is something like the earth’s magnetic trap. During en- ing work and career prospects. There is no doubt that the INP is able to offer good prospects. It should also be emphasized that extremely complicated modern experiments require efforts of a powerful team of like-minded fellows rather than of one per- son. That is why the inflow of young researchers is so important 87 Andrey A. SHOSHIN is a junior Andrey V. ANIKEEV is a candidate researcher, Budker Institute of Nuclear of physics and mathematics, senior Physics, Siberian Branch, Russian researcher in the Budker Institute of Academy of Sciences; Nuclear Physics, Siberian Branch, lecturer at the Department of General Russian Academy of Sciences; associate 2007 Physics and Theoretical Physics professor, Department of Plasma at Novosibirsk State University Physics at Novosibirsk State University SCIENCE First Hand, V. 5(17) (Novosibirsk). (Novosibirsk). Research interests: plasma physics, Winner of the Budker Prize of the Siberian spectroscopy, effect of plasma on various Branch of the Russian Academy of materials Sciences (1996), research fellow of the Alexander von Humboldt foundation May • 2018 • Special Issue https://scfh.ru/en/papers/trap-f-o-r-fusion-/ SCIENCE FIRST HAND SCIENCE FIRST HAND https://scfh.ru/en/papers/trap-f-o-r-fusion-/ May • 2018 • Special Issue PHYSICS OF PLASMA hanced solar activity, the flow of charged particles of the solar wind deforms the earth’s magnetosphere. Owing to the development of hydromagnetic instabili- ties, the plasma penetrates into the upper atmosphere near the poles; atmospheric gases, interacting with the charged particles of the plasma, become excited and start glowing. This is the basis for the “aurora polaris,” a phenomenon that can Coils Coils be observed near the poles only. In addition to the main direction in plasma physics research, there are also various applications which are just as important. These applications include numerous new technologies: plasma cutting, welding of metals, and process- x ing of metal surfaces. Plasma can be used as the working medium in spacecraft y z engines and luminescent lamps. The use of plasma-based technologies caused a real boom in microelectronics. One advantage was the efficiency of proces- sors and an increase in the memory volume; the amount of chemicals used in microelectronics production was substantially reduced, which minimized the degree of environmental contamination. Dense high-temperature plasma exists only in the stars; on the earth it can be obtained only under laboratory conditions. This unusual state of matter а impresses us with a great number of degrees of freedom; at the same time it is capable of self-organization and response to external force. For instance, it is b possible to confine plasma in a magnetic field and make it take various forms. B2 B2 Nevertheless, plasma tends to acquire a state that is most beneficial in terms (x=0, y=0) of energy, which often leads to the development of various instabilities. Like Z a living being, plasma strives to escape from the rigid “cage” of the magnetic B trap if it is not satisfied with the configuration of this trap. That is why a real challenge to physicists is to create conditions for plasma to be stable, to “live” General view of the GDT facility B1 Configuration of the magnetic field in the simple mirror trap used for plasma confinement: а — arrangement of coils and configuration of the magnetic field (part of the trajectory of the trapped particle is shown); b — magnetic field along the trap axis peacefully in the trap for a long time, and to get heated using various admixtures, injecting powerful beams, and to thermonuclear temperatures of the order of 10 million “probing” plasma in different ways. “Responding” to these degrees Celsius. actions, Plasma, though reluctantly, had to share its most Today, two unique large plasma traps successfully oper- precious secrets. ate at the INP. These traps were created by putting the 88 unique ideas and principles developed at the INP into 89 practice. These are open-type traps, which are consider- Gas-dynamic trap ably different from the popular closed magnetic systems. The gas-dynamic trap (GDT) was constructed in the They are impressive both because of their mysterious Budker Institute of Nuclear Physics in Novosibirsk in 1986. grandness and due to the simplicity of operation. While This is an open magnetic system for plasma confinement. working with these facilities, the scientists managed to The magnetic field configuration in the classical axial- achieve important results on heating and confining hot symmetric magnetic trap is an extended region of a homo- dense plasma as well as to make a number of discoveries geneous magnetic field with peaks at the edges, which are associated with the basic properties of this fourth state of ensured by coils generating a strong magnetic field. The matter. Each year brought new, unusual facts concerning regions under these coils (those regions of space occupied the plasma “life” in traps; they were the result of varying by the magnetic field where the field reaches the maximum the magnetic field configuration, applying electric fields, May • 2018 • Special Issue https://scfh.ru/en/papers/trap-f-o-r-fusion-/ SCIENCE FIRST HAND SCIENCE FIRST HAND https://scfh.ru/en/papers/trap-f-o-r-fusion-/ May • 2018 • Special Issue PHYSICS OF PLASMA Cryopumps Neutral beam injectors Fast ions Warm (target) plasma Mirror coil Expander cell Beam dump Central cell Cusp cell End tank value) are usually called the “magnetic mirrors,” and the cupied by the plasma very large, one can reach the plasma- Layout of the GDT device trap based on such a principle is called a mirror trap or confinement time sufficient for a controlled nuclear fusion. “Mirrors”. So in the simplest case, the magnetic field in the The length of such a GDT-reactor, however, will be several mirror trap is generated by mirror coils only. kilometers. Nevertheless, using various devices, the so- The charged particles of plasma (negative electrons and called ambipolar plugs, which reduce the plasma flow from positive ions) move along the force lines of the magnetic the trap, will allow the trap length to be reasonably long. field between the magnetic mirrors and are reflected from Therefore, the reactor prospects of gas dynamic trap still them, thus, performing oscillatory motions. Particles whose remain attractive. The most promising fusion application kinetic energy is sufficient to overcome the potential barrier of the plasma-confinement scheme is a GDT-based simple 90 of the mirror leave the trap within one flight. and reliable source of fast neutrons with energy of 14 MeV, 91 The differences of the gas-dynamic trap (GDT) from the which are generated in the fusion reaction of deuterium and usual mirror trap described above are the large length of tritium. Actually, this is the same fusion reactor (but with the central cell with the homogeneous field and a very large a low efficiency), which consumes energy and produces “mirror ratio” (ratio R = B1/B2 of the magnetic field values neutrons. Such a neutron source can be used for material in the mirror and in the trap center). In this case the mean testing of the first wall of the future industrial fusion plant free path of ions is small, as compared with the length of the or for driving a subcritical fission reactor with ensures the homogeneous magnetic field segment. Plasma flow from the safety of modern nuclear power plants. The researchers of GDT, therefore, obeys the gas dynamics laws, similar to gas the Budker Institute of Nuclear Physics have been devel- outflow from a container into vacuum through a small hole oping the project of the GDT-based neutron source for (which suggested the name of the GDT device). Making many years. To test the theoretical predictions in practice the “holes” in magnetic field very small and the volume oc- and to accumulate a plasma-physics database for creating Inside the GDT vacuum chamber May • 2018 • Special Issue https://scfh.ru/en/papers/trap-f-o-r-fusion-/ SCIENCE FIRST HAND SCIENCE FIRST HAND https://scfh.ru/en/papers/trap-f-o-r-fusion-/ May • 2018 • Special Issue PHYSICS OF PLASMA a neutron source, the INP scientists developed an experimental model of a gas-dynamic trap.