Credit: Image courtesy of Nathan Howard
A high-resolution photo shows the inside of the Alcator C-Mod tokamak with a representative cross-section of a fusion plasma superimposed. The inset depicts the approximate extent of the plasma turbulence simulations performed as part of this work. These simulations clearly demonstrate the coexistence of long wavelength blobs and short wavelength “streamers” (the small, finger-like structures in the figure) that comprise the turbulence in the core of the experimental plasmas.