Ion flux measurements with the improved collector probe system at the TEXTOR-94 tokamak

A collector probe system at the TEXTOR-94 tokamak has been upgraded becoming a versatile tool in studies of erosion and deposition processes under plasma discharges. The reconstruction dealt with the distinct modification of the computer aided probe steering system and the collector probe head. The new operation system, based on a LabView environment, allows unlimited number of preprogrammed linear and angular probe movements and is applied for either integrated or time-resolved measurements of ion fluxes in the scrape-off plasma. Particular advantage is related to the possibility of such measurements during a selected part of a tokamak discharge, for instance the flat top, neutral beam injection phase, neon injection for plasma cooling, etc. The upgraded system and the results from some of the experiments, where the new possibilities have been beneficial, are presented in the article. (C) 1998 American institute of Physics. [S0034-6748(98)00707-2]