Maximising <i>D</i> − <i>T</i> fusion power by optimising the plasma composition and beam choice in JET
D. Van Eester, E. Lerche, P. Huynh, T. Johnson, Dmitriy Yadikin, Ž. Štancar, S. Aleiferis, D. Frigione, L. Garzotti, P. Lomas, C. Lowry, M. Maslov, JET contributors, EUROfusion-IM team
Abstract
Abstract JET has a neutral beam injection as well as a radio frequency (RF) system for bringing plasmas to fusion-relevant temperatures. The former allows D as well as T birth energies of the order of 100–120 keV while the latter has the flexibility to heat a variety of populations by adjusting the antenna frequency. In this paper it is illustrated that—when the JET plasma is heated—the power harvested from D − T fusion reactions favours operating away from the 50–50 D − T balance and that exploiting pure D beams is more beneficial than combined D and T beams as well as pure T beams. Although beam heating dominates the overall behaviour in JET—as much more beam power than wave power can be coupled to the plasma—RF heating allows efficient heating of the very core.