The two-dimensional (2D) structure of plasma density turbulence in a magnet
ically confined plasma can potentially be measured using a Thomson scatteri
ng system made from components of the Nova laser of Lawrence Livermore Nati
onal Laboratory. For a plasma such as the National Spherical Torus Experime
nt at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory, the laser would form an appr
oximate to 10-cm-wide plane sheet beam passing vertically through the chamb
er across the magnetic field. The scattered light would be imaged by a char
ge coupled device camera viewing along the direction of the magnetic field.
The laser energy required to make 2D images of density turbulence is in th
e range 1-3 kJ, which can potentially be obtained from a set of frequency-d
oubled Nd:glass amplifiers with diameters in the range of 208-315 mm. A las
er pulse width of less than or equal to 100 ns would be short enough to cap
ture the highest frequency components of the expected density fluctuations.
(C) 2001 American Institute of Physics.