Measuring the plasma equilibrium is essential for real time plasma control and for the investigation of an abundance of physics questions. However, many existing kinetic equilibria reconstruction techniques rely heavily on integrated magnetic measurements and neutron-sensitive diagnostics, which will be difficult to design and operate in ITER and DEMO. Here we present and test a conceptual design for a non-magnetic equilibrium reconstruction method using data from a radial electron cyclotron emission diagnostic and an image of the plasma boundary—diagnostics which can be robustly designed in high-neutron environments. This technique is based on the measurement of a discrete q-profile and the symmetry mapping of the electron temperature profile, both of which can be acquired with ECE.
'Burning plasma' diagnostics for the physics of JET and ITER