PLASMA-WAVE INTERACTION IN A TOROIDAL STEADY-STATE DEVICE

The Thorello toroidal magnetized plasma device was built in order to s tudy basic plasma-wave interaction phenomena. The ability to operate w ith finite ion temperature makes the Thorello plasma device suitable f or studying electrostatic wave propagation in the frequency range of t he ion cyclotron. In particular, the plasma dispersion properties are verified. A comparison between the theoretical dispersion relation and the experimental results permits an indirect accurate estimate of the ion temperature, typically in the range 0.05-0.3 eV. In hydrogen plas ma H-3+ minority ion concentration is determined as well.