Numerical Simulation of Electron Cyclotron Wave Current Start-Up in Tokamaks

Abstract

The electron cyclotron wave current start-up in tokamaks has been simulated using Monte-Carlo method in two-dimensional configuration space (x, y) and two-dimensional velocity space (V_//, V_⊥). The simulation results of the relationship between start-up current and external vertical magnetic field is consistent with experiments, and the simulation results coincides the physical analyses that the start-up current is obtained by canceling the toroidal drift in one toroidal direction by external vertical magnetic field for energetic electrons in low density plasmas.