Kinetic effects in tokamak scrape-off layer plasmas

Abstract

The short mean-free path expansion used in fluid modeling of scrape-off layer plasmas is often violated for typical discharge parameters, especially by the superthermal particles, which carry most of the heat flux. Thus, the tail of the distribution function can strongly depart from Maxwellian due to nonlocal mean-free path effects, which can modify plasma transport, impurity radiation, and plasma–neutral gas interactions. These nonlocal effects become particularly pronounced for detached plasma conditions that are characterized by sharp gradients in the plasma parameters along the magnetic field. These problems are being addressed by developing one spatial dimension and two velocity variables, fully kinetic, collisional, and time-dependent particle-in-cell code, W1 [Contrib. Plasma Phys. 34, 436 (1994)], and its parallel-computer version, PW1 [Contrib. Plasma Phys. 34, 424 (1996)]. Comparisons are made with the Fokker–Planck code ALLA [Phys. Plasmas 3, 1634 (1996)] and with experimental results. Kinetic effects on probe measurement interpretation, impurity radiation, and parallel heat conductivity due to non-Maxwellian features in scrape-off layer plasmas are considered. Heat conductivity is compared with ad hoc heat flux limit models.