Sustained rotational stabilization of DIII-D plasmas above the no-wall beta limit

Sustained stabilization of the n=1 kink mode by plasma rotation at beta approaching twice the stability limit calculated without a wall has been achieved in DIII-D by a combination of error field reduction and sufficient rotation drive. Previous experiments have transiently exceeded the no-wall beta limit. However, demonstration of sustained rotational stabilization has remained elusive because the rotation has been found to decay whenever the plasma is wall stabilized. Recent theory [Boozer, Phys. Rev. Lett. 86, 5059 (2001)] predicts a resonant response to error fields in a plasma approaching marginal stability to a low-n kink mode. Enhancement of magnetic nonaxisymmetry in the plasma leads to strong damping of the toroidal rotation, precisely in the high-beta regime where it is needed for stabilization. This resonant response, or “error field amplification” is demonstrated in DIII-D experiments: applied n=1 radial fields cause enhanced plasma response and strong rotation damping at beta above the no wal...