Experimental and simulation study on the backstreaming positive ions on the quarter-size negative ion source for CRAFT NNBI test facility

Abstract

As an effective methods of plasma heating, neutral beam injection (NBI) systems based on negative hydrogen ion sources will be utilized in future magnetic-confinement nuclear fusion experiments. Because of the collisions between the fast negative ions and the neutral background gas, the positive ions are inevitable created in the acceleration region in the negative NBI system. These positive ions are accelerated back into the ion source and become high energy backstreaming ions. In order to explore the characters of backstreaming ions, the track and power deposition of backstreaming H+ beam is estimated using the experimental and simulation methods at NNBI test facility. Results show that the flux of backstreaming positive ions is 1.93 % of that of negative ion extraction from ion source, and the magnet filed in the beam source has an effect on the backstreaming positive ions propagation.