Effect of magnetic island on three-dimensional structure of edge radiation and its consequences for detachment in LHD (EX-D)

Detached plasmas represent an important operational regime for a fusion reactor whereby the heat load to the divertor can be reduced through enhanced radiation to ensure sustainable steady-state discharges. Normally, in toroidal devices there exists a density threshold above which detachment occurs, but in LHD the plasma commonly experiences radiative collapse before this threshold is reached. Recent work on LHD has shown the addition of an n/m=1/1 magnetic island (MI) enhances the detachment process by lowering its density threshold. In this paper the effects of the MI on the 3D radiation structure in attached and detached plasmas as predicted by EMC3-EIRENE are clearly seen in the imaging bolometer (IRVB) data, experimentally confirming the role that the MI plays in the detachment process. With the addition of the MI the carbon radiation profile from the code in a poloidal cross-section becomes more localized near the helical divertor (HD) x-points (X). This is reflected in the focussing of the radiation patterns corresponding to the HDX in both the IRVB and code data in images corresponding to the IRVB field of view (FOV). Detachment results in a more asymmetric radiation profile in the poloidal cross-section code data with localized peaks near the HDX and MIX. The radiation from the MIX is reflected in strong radiation from the corresponding location in the IRVB FOV from both code and IRVB data. However the relative increase in the radiation from the MIX is greater in the code data than in the IRVB data for reasons which are so far unknown. Also similar discharges with and without the MI show detachment with the MI, albeit at a lower density than the discharge without the MI. This work confirms the previous conclusion that the MI enhances the localization of the radiation and is conducive to achieving and sustaining the detachment. (author)