Lower hybrid current drive at high density in Alcator C-Mod

Experimental observations of lower hybrid current drive (LHCD) at high density on the Alcator C-Mod toKoćamak are presented in this paper. Bremsstrahlung emission from relativistic fast electrons in the core plasma drops suddenly above line-averaged densities of 10²⁰ m^-3 (ω/ω_LH ∼ 3) in single null discharges with large (≥8 mm) inner gaps, well below the density limit previously observed on limited toKoćamaks (ω/ω_LH ∼ 2). Modelling and experimental evidence suggest that the absence of LHCD driven fast electrons at high density may be due to parasitic collisional absorption in the scrape-off layer (SOL). Experiments show that the population of fast electrons produced by LHCD at high density (n_ē > 10²⁰m^-3 ) can be increased by operating with an inner gap of less than ∼5 mm with the strongest non-thermal emission in inner wall limited plasmas. A change in plasma topology from single to double null produces a modest increase in non-thermal emission at high density. Increasing the electron temperature in the periphery of the plasma (0.8 > r/a > 1.0) also results in a modest increase in non-thermal electron emission above the density limit. Ray tracing/Fokker-Planck simulations of these discharges predict the observed sensitivity to plasma position when the effects of collisional absorption in the SOL are included in the model.