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(THP2/25) Heating and Current Drive by Electron Bernstein Waves in NSTX and MAST Type Plasmas

A. K. Ram¹⁾, A. Bers¹⁾, S. D. Schultz¹⁾, C. N. Lashmore-Davies²⁾, R. A. Cairns³⁾, P. Efthimion⁴⁾, G. Taylor^4)
 
1) Plasma Science & Fusion Center, M.I.T, Cambridge, MA 02139, U.S.A.
²⁾ Euratom - UKAEA Fusion Association, Culham Science Centre, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 3DB, United Kingdom
³⁾ University of St. Andrews, St. Andrews, Fife, KY16 9SS, United Kingdom
⁴⁾ Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory, Princeton, NJ 08543, U.S.A.

Abstract.  The high $\beta$ operating regime of spherical tokamaks (ST), such as in NSTX and MAST, make them attractive fusion devices. To attain the high $\beta$'s, there is a need to heat and to drive currents in ST plasmas. While ST plasmas are overdense to conventional electron cyclotron (EC) waves, electron Bernstein waves (EBW) offer an attractive possibility both for heating and for driving plasma currents. We consider techniques for the excitation of EBWs on NSTX and MAST-type plasmas. Emission of EBWs from inside the plasma and its conversion to the conventional EC modes at the plasma edge are also considered.

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