1  General information of EAST campaign 2022

This campaign will be from April 15 to July 15 as follow:

1) April 9-14, commissioning of EAST sub-systems: superconducting magnets, power supplies, plasma control, magnetic measurements calibration etc.

2）April 15-30 (2 weeks), commissioning of EAST machine: plasma setup (Ip=0.5MA，n_e=1.5-2.0x10¹⁹/m³,B_T=2.5T), mid-level heating and current drive power (5.0-6.0MW), self-consistency of plasma diagnostics；

3）May 1-28 (4 weeks), major EAST targets of this campaign (400s H-mode， 10MW inject power with 100s duration), investigating the following topics in long-pulse operation and to accomplish the national tasks in the national 13th Five-Year Plan : plasma control, equilibrium & stability, transport & confinement, H&CD, particle and heat exhaust, core-edge integration, energetic particles.

4）May 29-July 15 (7 weeks), physical experiment for proposals, covering ongoing fundings/projects, open proposals on cutting-edge topics. Proposals should focus on the key issues of ITER/CFETR.

* 2 weeks contingency included.

Plasma operation windows for this campaign:

I_p=0.3-0.8MA, B_T<3.0T, 3.0<q₉₅<9.0, 0.3<n_e/n_GW<0.8, USN/LSN/DN, 4.0MW<P_heat<10MW.

2  Physical research Content

2.1 Integrated scenario development and relevant key physics

Integrated scenario development and relevant key physics toward ITER and CFETR：high betap scenario with high q_min and ITB, high betap scenario at ITER relevant heating scheme, ITER baseline and hybrid related scenario，high ion temperature operation with synergy effect of NBI,  ICRF and ECRH， advanced plasma control methods etc.

2.2 Plasma confinement and transport

For high-power, long-pulse plasma confinement and transport, study the momentum and particle transport under steady-state operating conditions,  focusing on high-Z impurity behavior under high-power heating, and explore internal transport barrier formation at high ion temperatures. Establish a dimensionless normalized parameter scaling database for studying the turbulence and transport characteristics under various operating conditions and the multi-scale interaction mechanism with multi-mode (such as NTM, AE, EP), and carry out long-pulse I-mode analysis.

2.3 MHD&3D physics

MHD instabilities and 3D physics studies in low torque, low q95 plasmas in support of ITER high Q operation: RMP ELM control, disruption physics and mitigation, Core MHD and its interaction with 3D field, frontier studies in 3D physics etc.

2.4 Pedestal and edge physics

Pedestal structure and small/No ELM regimes in supporting ITER and CFETR: parameter dependence and validation of pedestal structure (especially ne,sep/ne,ped, grad ne); extension of small/no ELM regimes towards low q₉₅  (q₉₅~53) relevant to ITER high Q scenario;  compatibility of high-performance pedestal with radiative divertor; impact of recycling particles on edge plasma behaviors in long-pulse high-performance operation; key physics in pedestal for high-performance high-density operation (especially with pellet injection), etc.

2.5 Divertor and Plasma-Wall Interaction

Plasma–wall interaction physics and its integrated control for long-pulse high-power operation: detachment control compatible with core plasma, tungsten source and edge transport, wall conditioning and its real-time control, particle exhaust and recycling, material erosion and migration during long pulse operation，with P_inj > 10 MW.

2.6  Energetic particle physics

Towards ITER and CFETR high performance plasma, EAST EP research program is focused on: EP velocity-space distribution with the synergistic effects of NBI and ICRF; the effect of non-axisymmetric magnetic fields on EP redistribution/loss with the impact on the first wall;  investigation of destabilizing and controlling EP related modes; the interaction of EP with background  instabilities (turbulence, sawtooth, neoclassical tearing modes, etc.)