SOLPS simulation of TCV divertor leg length studies

This contribution uses TCV experiments with varying divertor configurations to investigate the particle- and heat cross-field transport within the scrape-off layer, which greatly determines the peak heat flux on the plasma-facing components. The proximity of expected peak heat fluxes to the material limits for ITER raises the necessity of obtaining a quantitative understanding of the mechanisms that determine the heat flux profiles on the divertor plates. Target heat flux profiles are often described by a truncated exponential profile with a decay length λ convoluted with a Gaussian of width S, which are interpreted as broadening due to diffusive transport upstream and in the divertor regions, respectively [1]. It is shown that an increase of the poloidal divertor leg length Ldiv (~ factor 3) leads to an unexpected increase of λ , while having little effect on S [2]. The aim of this study is to reproduce the experimental findings quantitatively using the SOLPS code package.