Research projects

Current research projects

Resonant Magnetic Perturbations Resonant magnetic perturbations (RMPs) are the most successful technique in suppressing Edge Localized Modes (ELMs). Our research focusses on the consequences of applying RMPs to plasma confinement. We compare theory and experiments through modeling. I am currently looking for some undergraduate students that might be interested in doing some modeling and visualization of RMPs in Tokamak plasmas.
Particle Transport Where Prof. Mordijck's previous research focussed particle transport changes as a result of RMPs, we are expanding this research to include many more typical tokamak regimes and parameter scans. We are combining experimental perturbative particle transport experiments with steady-state and perturbative particle transport modeling, in order to verify and validate particle transport in Tokamaks.
Boundary Plasma Physics One of the big challenges in tokamak research is the interaction of the plasma with wall surfaces. This is a twofold challenge, where the plasma can damage the walls (e.g. high heat fluxes can damage the walls), but the impurities relased from the walls will affect plasma confinement (e.g. MARFE's strongly affect plasma confinement). Our research in this area focusses on using a fluid model that is coupled to a Monte-Carlo neutral code, to investigate the influence of the walls on plasma confinement. Our goal is to understand the physics mechanisms at play in order to create a predictive design capability for building future tokamaks and optimizing experiments in current devices.
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