Post Doctoral Projects:
- Impurity neutral gas studies at DIII-D and Asdex-Upgrade – the 3DPSI group at UW Madison has invented a new in-situ pressure gauge that enables to measure fractional neutral pressures of helium, hydrogen and other impurities. This system is planned for implementation into the DIII-D tokamak, San Diego, USA and a single gauge has been implemented already into the ASDEX-Upgrade tokamak, Germany. The goal of this project is to implement a comprehensive system into DIII-D and use both establishments to study the impact of 3D magnetic fields used for plasma edge stability control on the impurity transport in the plasma edge. This questions has broad relevance for helium ash removal as well as for impurity retention questions during radiative edge cooling experiments. Please contact Prof. O. Schmitz directly for questions and for applications.
Graduate Student Projects:
- Development of a thermal Helium beam diagnostic for DIII-D– a new whistler wave antenna was installed into DIII-D and the measurement of local plasma parameters is a priority. We will implement a thermal helium beam diagnostic at the antenna, that is capable of measuring electron density and temperature by utilizing a small amount of helium atoms as atomic probes. The light of the helium will be analyzed by line ratio spectroscopy and compared to an existing and ever improving atomic collisional radiative model. The student will work on design, implementation and finally exploitation of the system for helicon coupling and plasma boundary questions. The position will include a long term (2-3 years) secondment to DIII-D, which is located in San Diego, CA, USA. Please contact contact Prof. O. Schmitz directly for questions and for applications.
- Radio-frequency modeling and measurement in a helicon photo-type plasma cell for the AWAKE project at CERN – helicon plasma are being considered for application in next generation particle accelerators. For the wake field concept, plasma cells with high axial homogeneity are required at high plasma density (10^21 m-3). In this PhD thesis a dedicated study of the radio-frequency (RF) coupling of RF waves in the whistler domain of magnetized plasmas will be conducted including development of a COMSOL based RF model. A key element is to understand how single one meter helicon plasma cells can be scaled to several hundred meter long accelerator systems. The student will work on design, implementation and finally exploitation of the RF system at a helicon promo-type in the laboratory in Madison as well as at CERN. The position will include frequent visits to CERN and possibly also a longer term (1-2 years) secondment to CERN, Switzerland. Please contact contact Prof. O. Schmitz directly for questions and for applications.
Undergraduate Student Projects:
- Line ratio analysis of plasma parameters in a Penning plasma discharge – experimental/analysis project, requires interest/skills in Matlab, spectroscopy and atomic physics
Furthermore, we are always looking for engaged students and offer various exciting opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students. Please contact Prof. O. Schmitz directly.