L-I-H transition dynamics in magnetically confined plasma

Abstract

The understanding of fundamental dynamics during the transition from low to high confinement mode in magnetically confined plasma is significant. This process requires a certain amount of external power to initiate the transition. In this work, we utilize a primitive model to study the dynamics of the transition with the preceding limit-cycle oscillation during power ramp-up. In addition, we show that the increasing linear zonal flow damping rate delays the onset of transitions and extends the duration of the oscillatory phase, suggesting the external particle injection leads to a delay of transition and power threshold upshift.