The comparison between near-infrared and traditional CO 2 phase contrast imaging on HL-2A tokamak

Abstract The main idea of developing Near Infrared Phase Contrast Imaging (NI-PCI) diagnostic on HL-2A tokamak is presented. Compared to the traditional PCI diagnostic which injects CO 2 laser beam with a wavelength of 10.6 μm into plasma, NI-PCI using 1.55 μm laser has more advantages in measuring plasma density fluctuations due to shorter wavelength. This novel diagnostic is designed to detect plasma density perturbations with a wavenumber ranging from 2 cm −1 to over 30 cm −1 without significant phase scintillation effect. Comparison of diffraction effects between 10.6 μm and 1.55 μm laser beam shows that NI-PCI has a better response than PCI with a size-limited diagnostic window on HL-2A.