Effect of Nuclear Plus Interference Scattering on Fast-Ion Slowing-Down Distribution Functions in Thermonuclear Plasmas

Abstract

The effect of the nuclear plus interference (NI) scattering on the slowing-down distribution functions of energetic-ions, e.g., protons produced by ³He(d,p)⁴He reactions in a D³He plasma and an energetic deuterium beam injected into a DT plasma, are examined using the Boltzmann-Fokker-Planck model. As a result of the acceleration of the slowing-down process of energetic ions due to NI scattering, the magnitude of the energetic component is reduced compared with the case when NI scattering is ignored. The degree of the reduction and its energy range are quantitatively evaluated for various plasma conditions.