Patent · US Expired

Method and apparatus for producing average magnetic well in a reversed field pinch

US4560528A · kind A · utility

69Cited by
7References
32Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventor

Key dates

Filing dateApr 12, 1982
Grant dateDec 24, 1985
Priority date
Expiry dateApr 12, 2002

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
  • CPC primaryY02E30/10
  • WIPO fieldEngines, pumps, turbines
  • WIPO sectorMechanical engineering

Abstract

A magnetic well reversed field plasma pinch method and apparatus produces hot magnetically confined pinch plasma in a toroidal chamber having a major toroidal axis and a minor toroidal axis and a small aspect ratio. A reversed magnetic field pinch current channel within the plasma and at least one hyperbolic magnetic axis outside substantially all of the plasma form thereby a region of average magnetic well in a region of nested closed magnetic surfaces surrounding the plasma current channel when the magnetic field component in the direction of the hyperbolic magnetic axis is also made to be substantially less than zero in the vicinity of the hyperbolic magnetic axis. The magnetic well reversed field pinch is operated so that reversal of the safety factor q and of the toroidal magnetic field takes place within the plasma, and the plasma so produced closely approximates known theoretical stability conditions. The well-producing plasma cross section shape is produced effectively by an exterior shaping shell assembly. The plasma is formed inside a vacuum chamber and an electrically conducting shaping shell assembly, whose noncircular poloidal cross section imparts the desired shape to…

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.