Study of lower hybrid current drive towards long-pulse operation with high performance in EAST

High density experiments with 2.45 GHz lower hybrid current drive (LHCD) in EAST are analyzed by means of simulation and modeling, showing that parametric instabilities (PI), collisional absorption and density fluctuations in the edge region could be responsible for the low CD efficiency at high density. In addition, recent LHCD results with 4.6 GHz are presented, showing that lower hybrid wave can be coupled to plasma with low reflection coefficient, drive plasma current and modify the current profile, and heat plasma effectively. The related results between two systems (2.45 GHz and 4.6 GHz) are also compared, including CD efficiency and PI behavior.

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