COTTON-MOUTON EFFECT MEASUREMENT IN A PLASMA AT THE W7-AS STELLARATOR

A Cotton-Mouton effect polarimeter operating in the submillimeter wave region has been developed at the W7-AS stellarator. The transmission matrix representative for the changce of polarization state of a probi ng wave has been calculated and significant elements are determined ex perimentally. Systematic magnetic Geld scans over a wide range of the magnetic field conducted at two different probing frequencies were car ried our for the first time. These scans clearly demonstrate that the Cotton-Mouton effect is being observed under optimal experimental cond itions. The experimental setup measures the line integrated electron d ensity unambiguously and has proven its robustness under various condi tions.