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Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Swiss nuclear power and the case for long-term operation
Designed for 40 years but built to last far longer, Switzerland’s nuclear power plants have all entered long-term operation. Yet age alone says little about safety or performance. Through continuous upgrades, strict regulatory oversight, and extensive aging management, the country’s reactors are being prepared for decades of continued operation, in line with international practice.
D. J. Den Hartog et al.
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 59 | Number 1 | January 2011 | Pages 124-127
doi.org/10.13182/FST11-A11589
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Internal time-resolved measurement of magnetic field and electron temperature in low-field ( 1 T) plasmas is a difficult diagnostic challenge. To meet this diagnostic challenge in the Madison Symmetric Torus reversed-field pinch, two techniques are being developed: 1) spectral motional Stark effect (MSE) and 2) Fast Thomson scattering. For spectral MSE, the entire Stark-split H spectrum emitted by hydrogen neutral beam atoms is recorded and analyzed using a newly refined atomic emission model. A new analysis scheme has been developed to infer both the polarization direction and the magnitude of Stark splitting, from which both the direction and magnitude of the local magnetic field can be derived. For Fast Thomson scattering, two standard commercial flashlamp-pumped Nd:YAG lasers have been upgraded to “pulse-burst” capability. Each laser produces a burst of up to fifteen pulses at repetition rates 1–12.5 kHz, thus enabling recording of the dynamic evolution of the electron temperature profile and electron temperature fluctuations. To further these capabilities, a custom pulse-burst laser system is now being commissioned. This new laser is designed to produce a burst of laser pulses at repetition frequencies 5–250 kHz.