Plasma boundary shape control to regulate ELMs
The effects of a poloidally localized bulge at outer midplane is investigated with regards to the stability of ideal MHD peeling-ballooning modes and n = ∞ ballooning modes. The effect of the bulge is that the n = ∞ ballooning mode stability at the bottom of the H-mode pedestal is significantly degraded, while the peeling-ballooning mode stability is only slightly affected. The value of separatrix to pedestal density at which the n = ∞ ballooning mode limit is reached before the peeling-ballooning limit, decreases with the bulge size. The reduction of the required separatrix density would extend the access to quasi-coherent exhaust (QCE) operating mode without large ELMs to a wide range of scrape-off layer conditions. The free boundary equilibrium calculation shows that a bulge required for a significant stability change for a STEP fusion reactor can be achieved with 600 kA current in a midplane shaping coil.