Recent results of ECRH experiments on L-2M stellarator

Results are reported from experimental study of ECH heated plasma in the L-2M stellarator with special emphasis on studying the turbulent processes. It is shown that the total plasma energy at fixed total heating power is strongly dependent on the plasma position. Visible degradation of plasma confinement is observed for the inward shifted magnetic configurations where the stability conditions of ideal interchange MHD modes are violated. However, even in this case the situation can be improved by decreasing the average radius of the plasma boundary with the help of graphite limiter resulting in the increase of the Shafranov shift of magnetic surfaces and deepening of the magnetic well due to the effect of self-stabilization. This in turn causes stabilization of ideal MHD interchange modes and visible increase in plasma energy and volume average value of beta. Statistical properties of turbulence was studied both for the central part of the plasma column and for the plasma edge. It is shown that one of the critical factors determining the coherent structures and turbulent fluxes in the edge plasma is the radial electric field. (author)