Effect of ion cyclotron acceleration on frequency chirping beam-driven instabilities in NSTX

The fast-ion distribution function in the National Spherical Torus Experiment (NSTX) is modified from shot to shot while keeping the total injected power at ∼2 MW. Deuterium beams of different energy and tangency radius are injected into helium L-mode plasmas, producing a rich set of instabilities, including TAE modes, 50-100∼kHz instabilities with rapid frequency sweeps or chirps, and strong, low frequency (10-20 kHz) fishbones. The experiment was motivated by a theory that attributes frequency chirping to the formation of holes and clumps in phase space. In the theory, increasing the effective collision frequency of the fast ions that drive the instability can suppress frequency chirping. In the experiment, high-power (∼3 MW) harmonic fast wave (HHFW) heating accelerates the fast ions in an attempt to alter the effective collision frequency. Steady-frequency TAE modes excited early in the discharge are affected by the HHFW heating but there is no evidence that the chirping of 20-100 kHz modes is suppressed. (author)