Pedestal Studies in DIII-D

Studies of the H-mode pedestal in the DIII-D tokamak are presented. The global energy confinement increases as the plasma pressure on top of the pedestal increases. The best empirical description for a pedestal width parameter is δpe [proportional to] (βpolPED)0.4, where δpe is the width of the electron pressure pedestal and βpolPED is the poloidal beta at the top of the pedestal. The edge profiles of electron density ne, electron temperature Te, and ion temperature Ti can all have different shapes. Thus, a simple width scaling for the edge might not exist, and studies of the physics of individual profiles have been initiated. A model for the ne profile, based on self-consistent treatment of edge particle sources and edge particle transport, agrees with several experimental observations. The steep gradient region for the Te profile often extends farther into the plasma than the ne pedestal step. Magnetohydrodynamic stability provides the ultimate limits to the evolution of the pedestal and usually leads to edge instabilities called edge-localized modes (ELMs). However, the absence of ELMs in a regime called the Quiescent H-mode shows that large pedestals can be produced without ELMs