Impurity transport
Understanding impurity transport in fusion devices
Suitable for Postdoctoral researchers, PhD students, Master’s students, final-year undergraduate students, and interns
Impurity transport is a central issue in magnetically confined fusion plasmas because impurity accumulation can lead to fuel dilution and enhanced radiative losses, thereby degrading plasma performance. Understanding impurity behavior in reactor-relevant conditions requires accurate modelling of both turbulent and neoclassical transport processes across a wide range of plasma parameters and magnetic configurations.
The main goal of this project is to improve the physics understanding of impurity transport in fusion devices by combining first-principles gyrokinetic modelling with systematic analysis of transport mechanisms. In particular, the project will use the GYSELA code to investigate how turbulence, collisional effects, and magnetic geometry influence impurity fluxes, peaking, and redistribution for different impurity species and operating regimes.
Because high-fidelity gyrokinetic simulations are computationally demanding, the project will rely on targeted numerical campaigns and comparative studies to identify robust trends and key controlling parameters. The work will be supported by international collaborations for benchmarking and interpretation, with the broader objective of improving predictive capability for impurity transport in present and future fusion devices.
