Nonlinear cyclotron absorption and stimulated scattering

In electron cyclotron resonance heating (ECRH), wave sources heating a plasma linearly with respect to intensity; but as the intensity of ECRH gets larger, there might appear nonlinear effects that would result in cutoff of net absorption. This thesis uses quantum mechanical theory to derive a threshold microwave intensity for nonlinear absorption. The quantum mechanical theory estimates that the threshold microwave intensity for nonlinear absorption is about 105 watts/cm2 for a microwave heating experiment (T/sub e/ = 100 ev, λ = 3,783 cm, B = 2.5 kG). This value seems large considering the present power capabilities of microwave sources (102 ∼ 103 watts/cm2), but for a low temperature plasma, this threshold will go down. There is another nonlinear phenomenon called stimulated cyclotron scattering that enhances photon scattering by electrons gyrating in a magnetic field. This is expected to prevent incoming photons from arriving at the central region of the fusion plasma, where absorption mainly takes place. Theory based on a photon transport model predicts that the threshold intensity for the stimulated cyclotron scattering is about 104 watts/cm2 for the plasma parameters mentioned above. This value seems large also, but a longer wavelength of microwaves and a larger magnitude magnetic field, which will be the case in reactor type facilities, will lower the threshold intensity to levels comparable with the currently developed microwave sources