On the spatial structure of solitary radial electric field at the plasma edge in toroidal confinement devices

The solitary radial electric field in the edge of toroidal plasma is studied based on the electric field bifurcation model. Results are applied to tokamak and helical plasmas, and the dependence of the electric field structure on the plasma parameters and geometrical factors is analyzed. The order of magnitude estimate for tokamak plasma is not far from experimental observations. It is shown that, in helical plasmas, the height of electric field structure is reduced substantially owing to the ripple particle transport, while the width is influenced less. The implications of the results for the limit of achievable gradient in the H-mode pedestal are also discussed.