Three new extreme ultraviolet spectrometers on NSTX-U for impurity monitoring.

Three extreme ultraviolet (EUV) spectrometers have been mounted on the National Spherical Torus Experiment-Upgrade (NSTX-U). All three are flat-field grazing-incidence spectrometers and are dubbed X-ray and Extreme Ultraviolet Spectrometer (XEUS, 8-70 Å), Long-Wavelength Extreme Ultraviolet Spectrometer (LoWEUS, 190-440 Å), and Metal Monitor and Lithium Spectrometer Assembly (MonaLisa, 50-220 Å). XEUS and LoWEUS were previously implemented on NSTX to monitor impurities from low- to high-Z sources and to study impurity transport while MonaLisa is new and provides the system increased spectral coverage. The spectrometers will also be a critical diagnostic on the planned laser blow-off system for NSTX-U, which will be used for impurity edge and core ion transport studies, edge-transport code development, and benchmarking atomic physics codes.

Diagnostics for molybdenum and tungsten erosion and transport in NSTX-U.

A comprehensive set of spectroscopic diagnostics is planned in the National Spherical Torus Experiment Upgrade to connect measurements of molybdenum and tungsten divertor sources to scrape-off layer (SOL) and core impurity transport, supporting the installation of high-Z plasma facing components which is scheduled to begin with a row of molybdenum tiles. Imaging with narrow-bandpass interference filters and high-resolution spectroscopy will be coupled to estimate divertor impurity influxes. Vacuum ultraviolet and extreme ultraviolet spectrometers will allow connecting high-Z sources to SOL transport and core impurity content. The high-Z diagnostics suite complements the existing measurements for low-Z impurities (carbon and lithium), critical for the characterization of sputtering of high-Z materials.

Compact hohlraum configuration with parallel planar-wire-array x-ray sources at the 1.7-MA Zebra generator.

A compact Z-pinch x-ray hohlraum design with parallel-driven x-ray sources is experimentally demonstrated in a configuration with a central target and tailored shine shields at a 1.7-MA Zebra generator. Driving in parallel two magnetically decoupled compact double-planar-wire Z pinches has demonstrated the generation of synchronized x-ray bursts that correlated well in time with x-ray emission from a central reemission target. Good agreement between simulated and measured hohlraum radiation temperature of the central target is shown. The advantages of compact hohlraum design applications for multi-MA facilities are discussed.

Extreme ultraviolet spectroscopy and modeling of Cu on the SSPX Spheromak and laser plasma "Sparky".

Impurities play a critical role in magnetic fusion research. In large quantities, impurities can cool and dilute plasma creating problems for achieving ignition and burn; however in smaller amounts the impurities could provide valuable information about several plasma parameters through the use of spectroscopy. Many impurity ions radiate within the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) range. Here, we report on spectra from the silver flat field spectrometer, which was implemented at the Sustained Spheromak Physics experiment (SSPX) to monitor ion impurity emissions. The chamber within the SSPX was made of Cu, which makes M-shell Cu a prominent impurity signature. The Spect3D spectral analysis code was utilized to identify spectral features in the range of 115-315 Å and to more fully understand the plasma conditions. A second set of experiments was carried out on the compact laser-plasma x-ray∕EUV facility "Sparky" at UNR, with Cu flat targets used. The EUV spectra were recorded between 40-300 Å and compared with results from SSPX.

X-ray absorption spectroscopy of aluminum z-pinch plasma with tungsten backlighter planar wire array source.

Absorption features from K-shell aluminum z-pinch plasmas have recently been studied on Zebra, the 1.7 MA pulse power generator at the Nevada Terawatt Facility. In particular, tungsten plasma has been used as a semi-backlighter source in the generation of aluminum K-shell absorption spectra by placing a single Al wire at or near the end of a single planar W array. All spectroscopic experimental results were recorded using a time-integrated, spatially resolved convex potassium hydrogen phthalate (KAP) crystal spectrometer. Other diagnostics used to study these plasmas included x-ray detectors, optical imaging, laser shadowgraphy, and time-gated and time-integrated x-ray pinhole imagers. Through comparisons with previous publications, Al K-shell absorption lines are shown to be from much lower electron temperature (∼10-40 eV) plasmas than emission spectra (∼350-500 eV).

Influence of induced axial magnetic field on plasma dynamics and radiative characteristics of Z pinches.

The influence of an induced axial magnetic field on plasma dynamics and radiative characteristics of Z pinches is investigated. An axial magnetic field was induced in a novel Z-pinch load: a double planar wire array with skewed wires (DPWAsk), which represents a planar wire array in an open magnetic configuration. The induced axial magnetic field suppressed magneto-Rayleigh-Taylor (MRT) instabilities (with m = 0 and m = 1 instability modes) in the Z-pinch plasma. The influence of the initial axial magnetic field on the structure of the plasma column at stagnation was manifested through the formation of a more uniform plasma column compared to a standard double planar wire array (DPWA) load [V. L. Kantsyrev et al., Phys. Plasmas 15, 030704 (2008)]. The DPWAsk load is characterized by suppression of MRT instabilities and by the formation of the sub-keV radiation pulse that occurs before the main x-ray peak. Gradients in plasma parameters along the cathode-anode gap were observed and analyzed for DPWAsk loads made from low atomic number Z (Al) and mid-Z (brass) wires.

In vitro characterisation of dopamine receptors in the superior colliculus of the rat.

In membrane preparations of superior colliculus of the rat, the binding of [3H]spiperone (0.15 nM) was displaced by the incorporation of (+)-butaclamol, haloperidol, apomorphine and (+/-)-sulpiride, but not by (-)-butaclamol, prazosin, propranolol, ketanserin or cinanserin. The Ki values for the displacement of [3H]spiperone by (+/-)-sulpiride, (+)-butaclamol and haloperidol were similar in tissue preparations from superior colliculus and striatum. Equilibrium analysis of the specific binding of [3H]spiperone (0.03-1.0 nM), defined by 10(-5) M (+/-)-sulpiride, to membrane preparations of the superior colliculus, showed the interaction to be saturable and of high affinity. However, the Bmax was only approximately 10% of that found in preparations of striatum; the apparent dissociation constant (KD) was the same in both preparations of the superior colliculus and striatum. Uptake of [3H]dopamine into synaptosomal preparations of the superior colliculus was approximately 20% of that found in synaptosomes from the striatum. In preparations of striatum nomifensine, but not desipramine or fluoxetine, inhibited the uptake of [3H]dopamine. However, in preparations from the superior colliculus, nomifensine, desipramine and fluoxetine were without effect on the uptake of [3H]dopamine. Dopamine, 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC) and 3-methoxytyramine (3-MT) were present in small concentrations in the superior colliculus. Homovanillic acid (HVA) was present in larger concentrations and the HVA plus DOPAC/dopamine ratios were greater in the superior colliculus than in the striatum. The superior colliculus contained only small amounts of noradrenaline but 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) and 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA) were present in larger amounts.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)