THEORY OF FAST-ION TRANSPORT INDUCED BY SAWTOOTH OSCILLATIONS - OVERVIEW AND NEW RESULTS

The work contains both an overview of recent theories and new results on the influence of sawtooth oscillations on the superthermal ions in a tokamak plasma. Ln particular, new results of numerical simulations of the sawtooth-crash-induced redistribution of fast ions are presente d. The results are based on the approach suggested by the authors earl ier [Nucl. Fusion 36, 159 (1996)]. Peculiarities of the particle motio n during the crash are revealed. Dependence of the behavior of fast io ns on their parameters, as well as on tokamak parameters and features of sawteeth, is analyzed. Based on this analysis, a simple picture sho wing the different effects of sawtooth oscillations on various groups of particles is suggested. (C) 1997 American Institute of Physics.