L-H transition physics in hydrogen and deuterium: Key role of the edge radial electric field and ion heat flux

Previous work carried out in the ASDEX Upgrade tokamak on the role of the edge radial electric field and ion heat flux in the L-H transition physics in deuterium plasmas has been extended in hydrogen plasmas. Similar discharges were performed in the two gases providing a detailed comparison of the edge kinetic profiles and heat fluxes in L-mode up to the L-H transition, as the heating power is increased. At the L-H transition, the edge ion heat flux just inside the separatrix is about two times higher in hydrogen than in deuterium. However, the ion plasma parameters at the plasma edge, T i and , as well as the radial electric field well, are found to be very similar in the two gases. The transport analysis based on this data reveals that, at the L-H transition, the ion heat transport at the plasma edge is about two times higher in hydrogen than in deuterium, in agreement with the well-known isotope effect of confinement and transport. This indicates that the higher power threshold in hydrogen is mainly due to the higher ion heat transport in this gas.