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Dorr, Milo

Publications and source records attributed to Dorr, Milo.

Development of an implicit electromagnetic capability for a hybrid gyrokinetic ion-fluid electron model

Here we report on the development and implementation of a hybrid kinetic ion–fluid electron model for electromagnetic COGENT simulations of edge plasmas. COGENT is a finite-volume gyrokinetic code that employs a locally field-aligned coordinate system combined with a mapped multi-block grid technology to handle strongly anisotropic edge plasma turbulence. The simulation model involves the long-wavelength limit of the ion gyrokinetic equation coupled to the vorticity and Ohm's law equations for the electromagnetic field perturbations. In order to handle the fast Alfvén wave time scales, an implicit-explicit time integration approach with a physics-based preconditioner is used. The model is successfully applied to the simulations of ion-scale resistive-drift ballooning turbulence in a toroidal annulus geometry. Substantial speed-up over a fully explicit time integration approach is observed.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Modelling of electrostatic ion-scale turbulence in divertor tokamaks with the gyrokinetic code $\mathrm{COGENT}$

Here, continuum gyrokinetic simulations of electrostatic ion scale turbulence are presented for the case of a diverted (single-null) tokamak geometry. The simulation model, implemented in the finite-volume code COGENT, solves the long-wavelength limit of the full-F gyrokinetic equation for ion species coupled to a vorticity equation for electrostatic potential variations, where a fluid model is used for an electron response. The model describes the ion scale ion temperature gradient (ITG) and resistive drift modes as well as neoclassical ion physics effects. Different turbulence regimes are observed depending on the plasma profiles, and the roles of a self-consistent background electric field and an X-point geometry are explored. In particular, increasing the pedestal density gradient and the corresponding radial electric field is demonstrated to suppress the ITG turbulence, whereas the same edge plasma background can still be destabilized by the resistive modes when the plasma resistivity is increased. The effects of X-point geometry are assessed by comparing cross-separatrix simulations with counterpart calculations performed for a toroidal annulus geometry. For the simulation parameters considered, similar global behaviour is observed in both cases, whereas strong local suppression of turbulence fluctuations is demonstrated near the X-point for the case of a single-null geometry.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Progress with the 5D full-F continuum gyrokinetic code COGENT

COGENT is an Eulerian gyrokinetic code being developed for edge plasma modelling. The code is distinguished by the use of a high-order finite-volume (conservative) discretization combined with mapped multi-block grid technology. Our recent work is focused on the development of a 5D full-F COGENT version.Anumerical algorithm utilizing locally a field-aligned multi-block coordinate system is implemented to facilitate simulations of highly anisotropic microturbulence in the presence of a strong magnetic shear. In this approach, the toroidal direction is divided into blocks such that,within each block, the cells are field-aligned and a non-matching (non-conformal) grid interface is allowed at the block boundaries. In this paper we report on details of the numerical implementation and present preliminary results of verification studies performed for the case of the ion temperature gradient (ITG) instability in a sheared toroidal annulus geometry.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗