Publication

From W7-X Towards ITER and Beyond: 2019 Status on EU Fusion Gyrotron Developments

Stefano Alberti, Jean-Philippe Hogge, Damien Fasel, Jérémy Genoud, Jérémie Dubray, Ioannis Pagonakis, Blaise Marlétaz, Konstantinos Avramidis
2019
Conference Papers

Abstract

In Europe, the research and development with main focus on achieving robust industrial designs of series gyrotrons for electron cyclotron heating and current drive of today's nuclear fusion experiments and towards a future DEMOnstration fusion power plant is constantly progressing. The R&D is following two different paths. Both are complementing each other: Firstly, it is the adaption of the physical design and basic mechanical construction of the reliably operating 140 GHz, 1 MW CW (spec.: 920 kW, 1800 s) gyrotron of the stellarator Wendelstein 7-X (W7-X), Greifswald, Germany. With regards to time and costs it is the target to perform reliable developments of fusion gyrotrons with advanced specifications for today's plasma fusion experiments. Main focus is on the development of the first EU 170 GHz, 1 MW CW (3600 s) gyrotron for the installation in ITER, Cadarache, France. Another adaption is the dual-frequency 126/84 GHz 1 MW (2 s) gyrotron upgrade for the medium size TCV tokamak, Lausanne, Switzerland. Finally, it is the upgrade of the W7-X gyrotron design towards an RF output power per unit of up to 1.5 MW and possible dual-frequency operation by keeping the basic mechanical construction. Additional to the proven design it allows to fit the new 1.5 MW gyrotron into the already existing infrastructure and to reuse existing W7-X gyrotron auxiliaries, e. g. the high-power voltage supply (HV PS) and the superconducting (SC) magnet. The second R&D path is defined by the complementary approach with regards to development risks towards a future gyrotron which shall fulfil the significant more advanced specifications of a future EU DEMO. The starting point is the 2 MW EU/KIT coaxial-cavity gyrotron design. Main requirements are an RF output power of 2 MW CW at above 200 GHz, multiple operating frequencies, frequency step-tunability and a total efficiency above 60 %.

Official source

Stefano Alberti, Jean-Philippe Hogge, Damien Fasel, Jérémy Genoud, Jérémie Dubray, Ioannis Pagonakis, Blaise Marlétaz, Konstantinos Avramidis
2019
Conference Papers

Abstract

Official source

Ontological neighbourhood

Physics

Plasma physics: Fusion power

Related concepts (19)

Fusion power

Fusion power is a proposed form of power generation that would generate electricity by using heat from nuclear fusion reactions. In a fusion process, two lighter atomic nuclei combine to form a heavier nucleus, while releasing energy. Devices designed to harness this energy are known as fusion reactors. Research into fusion reactors began in the 1940s, but as of 2023, no device has reached net power. Fusion processes require fuel and a confined environment with sufficient temperature, pressure, and confinement time to create a plasma in which fusion can occur.

Tokamak

A tokamak (ˈtoʊkəmæk; токамáк) is a device which uses a powerful magnetic field to confine plasma in the shape of a torus. The tokamak is one of several types of magnetic confinement devices being developed to produce controlled thermonuclear fusion power. , it was the leading candidate for a practical fusion reactor. Tokamaks were initially conceptualized in the 1950s by Soviet physicists Igor Tamm and Andrei Sakharov, inspired by a letter by Oleg Lavrentiev. The first working tokamak was attributed to the work of Natan Yavlinsky on the T-1 in 1958.

Gyrotron

A gyrotron is a class of high-power linear-beam vacuum tubes that generates millimeter-wave electromagnetic waves by the cyclotron resonance of electrons in a strong magnetic field. Output frequencies range from about 20 to 527 GHz, covering wavelengths from microwave to the edge of the terahertz gap. Typical output powers range from tens of kilowatts to 1–2 megawatts. Gyrotrons can be designed for pulsed or continuous operation. The gyrotron was invented by Soviet scientists at NIRFI, based in Nizhny Novgorod, Russia.

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