LUKE: a fast numerical solver for the 3-D relativistic bounce-averaged electron Drift Kinetic Equation

Joan Decker* and Y Peysson
Association EURATOM-CEA sur la Fusion
CEA-Cadarache, F-13108 Saint Paul-lez-Durance, France

April 18, 2019

*Email: joan.decker@cea.fr
Email:yves.peysson@cea.fr

Abstract

A new original code for solving the 3-D relativistic and bounce-averaged electron drift kinetic equation is presented. It designed for the current drive problem in tokamak with an arbitrary magnetic equilibrium. This tool allows self-consistent calculations of the bootstrap current in presence of other external current sources. RF current drive for arbitrary type of waves may be used. Several moments of the electron distribution function are determined, like the exact and effective fractions of trapped electrons, the plasma current, absorbed RF power, runaway and magnetic ripple loss rates and non-thermal bremsstrahlung. Advanced numerical techniques have been used to make it the first fully implicit (reverse time) 3-D solver, particularly well designed for implementation in a chain of code for realistic current drive calculations in high βp plasmas. All the details of the physics background and the numerical scheme are presented, as well a some examples to illustrate main code capabilities. Several important numerical points are addressed concerning code stability and potential numerical and physical limitations.

Contents
List of Figures
List of Tables
1 Introduction
2 Tokamak geometry and particle dynamic
 2.1 Coordinate system
 2.2 Particle motion
3 Kinetic description of electrons
 3.1 Boltzman equation; Gyro- and Wave-averaging
 3.2 Guiding-Center Drifts and Drift-Kinetic Equation
 3.3 Small drift approximation
 3.4 Low collision limit and bounce averaging
 3.5 Flux conservative representation
 3.6 Moments of the distribution function
4 Detailed description of physical processes
 4.1 Coulomb collisions
 4.2 Ohmic electric field
 4.3 Radio frequency waves
5 Numerical calculations
 5.1 Bounce integrals
 5.2 Grid definitions
 5.3 Discretization procedure
 5.4 Zero order term: the Fokker-Planck equation
 5.5 Up to first order term: the Drift Kinetic equation
 5.6 Initial solution
 5.7 Boundary conditions
 5.8 Moments of the Distribution Function
6 Algorithm
 6.1 Matrix representation
 6.2 Inversion procedure
 6.3 Normalization and definitions
7 Examples
 7.1 Ohmic conductivity
 7.2 Runaway losses
 7.3 Lower Hybrid Current drive
 7.4 Electron Cyclotron Current drive
 7.5 Fast electron radial transport
 7.6 Fast electron magnetic ripple losses
 7.7 Maxwellian bootstrap current
8 Conclusion
9 Acknowledgements
A Curvilinear Coordinate Systems
 A.1 General Case (u1,u2,u3)
 A.2 Configuration space
 A.3 Momentum Space
B Calculation of Bounce Coefficients for Circular Concentric FS
C Effective trapped fraction for Circular Concentric FS
D Cold Plasma Model for RF Waves
 D.1 Cold Plasma Model
 D.2 Lower Hybrid Current Drive
 D.3 Electron Cyclotron Current Drive
E Large pitch-angle collisions
F Alternative discrete cross-derivatives coefficients
G MatLab File List

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