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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2025

Global Gyrokinetic Simulations of Isotope Effects under Ambipolar Electric Fields and Advances Toward Whole-Volume Modeling

We review global gyrokinetic simulation studies on plasma transport in the Large Helical Device using XGC-S. XGC-S is an extended version of X-point Gyrokinetic Code for stellarators and has been progressively verified throughout the code development process. Verification tests of neoclassical transport successfully demonstrate the generation of an ambipolar electric field due to ripple-trapped particles. We perform quasi-linear analyses of the ion temperature gradient mode under the influence of the ambipolar electric field. The results reveal that the ambipolar electric field and the heavy hydrogen component in mixed isotope plasmas can lead to the favorable isotope effect observed in recent deuterium experiments. We also present recent efforts in code development toward whole-volume simulations, including the helical divertor region. A mesh generation scheme based on field-line tracing and the construction of curved surfaces perpendicular to the magnetic field would be promising for global field calculations in the whole-volume simulations.

Basic Plasma Phenomena and Gas Discharges↗
DOE OSTI2025

Gyrokinetic PIC Study on RMP Affected Neoclassical Transport in Toroidal Plasmas

In magnetically confined fusion plasmas, the breaking of ‘magnetic flux-surfaces’ due to resonant magnetic perturbations (RMPs) can generate magnetic islands and alter field topology to significantly impact plasma confinement and transport. Here, this work investigates the effect of magnetic islands on neoclassical radial energy transport within the core plasma of an analytic circular tokamak using the XGC-S global gyrokinetic particle-in-cell code. Findings from our simulations revealed substantial enhancements in electron neoclassical radial energy diffusivity in and around the islands, in addition to a newly observed two-peak structure at the O/X-points and outer island boundary in the electron diffusivity profile.

RMP↗
DOE OSTI2026

Effect of Magnetic Islands on Neoclassical Heat Diffusivity in a Global Tokamak Simulation

Resonant magnetic perturbations (RMPs) alter magnetic field topology via island formation and can modify core transport in toroidal fusion devices. Using the global gyrokinetic particle‐in‐cell code XGC‐S, originally developed for stellarator geometries, we quantify how island topology affects neoclassical heat transport in a circular tokamak with ($m,n$) = (5,2) RMP‐induced islands. Electron radial heat diffusivity exhibits a two‐peak structure with a dominant enhancement near the O/X‐point region and a secondary peak at the outer island boundary, whereas ion transport remains close to the neoclassical prediction. The observed electron diffusivity is strongly enhanced over the neoclassical baseline but remains well below the Rechester–Rosenbluth estimate, consistent with the non‐ergodic character of the island topology. The density dependence of diffusivity is weaker inside the islands than outside, indicating the presence of topology‐driven transport channels that do not depend strongly on collisionality. Two‐dimensional heat flux maps reveal an up–down antisymmetric structure at the island separatrices consistent with magnetic gradient and curvature drift effects, in contrast to the symmetric temperature flattening inside the islands. These results identify topology‐dependent avenues for electron heat transport in RMP‐perturbed cores and suggest regimes in which island geometry, rather than collisions alone, governs radial transport.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗