1 General information of EAST campaign 2026

This campaign run from March 31 to August 1, with the following schedule:

  1) March 31 - May 10, integrated commissioning of EAST device: superconducting magnets, power supplies, plasma control and central interlock, magnetic measurement calibration etc.

  2) May 11 - June 7 (4 weeks), plasma commissioning: plasma setup (Ip = 0.5 MA, ne = 3.0-5.0×1019 /m3, BT = 2.5 T); heating and current drive power commissioning (6-10MW); self-consistent verification of plasma diagnostics.

  3) June 8 - August 1 (8 weeks*), physics experiments for proposals.

 *Two weeks of contingency machine time are not included here

Plasma parameter range anticipated for this campaign:

I_p=0.3-0.7 MA, B_T < 3.0 T, 3 <q₉₅< 9, 0.3 <n_e/n_GW< 0.8, USN/LSN/DN, 6 MW<P_heat<10 MW.

2 Fields of physics research

  2.1 Integrated operation scenarios

Conduct integrated research on hybrid and steady-state operation scenarios aimed at scientific objectives such as BEST Q~1, investigate the realization of highconfinement plasma under tungsten wall conditions and core-boundary integration issues, and extend the operational range of EAST based on upgraded conditions.

  2.2 Plasma confinement and transport

High-Z impurity transport and control in high-current, tungsten-wall conditions; Investigate intrinsic rotation and NTV physics under low torque injection; Particle transport processes with pellet and compact torus injection; Explore ITB formation and sustainment at high ion temperatures; Turbulence and transport in different operational scenarios, including multi-mode, multi-scale interactions, with emphasis on experiment-model validation.

  2.3 MHD&3D physics

Investigate MHD instability and three-dimensional physics in low-momentum injected low-q95 plasmas operating at high fusion gain regime towards ITER, focusing on frontier research such as control of ELM and divertor heat flux by RMP, and the effects of three-dimensional fields on plasma instability, impurity and confinement.

  2.4 Pedestal and edge physics

Small/no-ELM regimes within the q95 operational window of the BEST device; Pedestal structure and confinement under uncoated metal wall conditions; Highconfinement pedestal scenarios compatible with divertor detachment; Highconfinement high-density pedestal, together with coordinated research on the interaction between radio frequency waves and edge plasmas.

 2.5 Divertor and plasma-wall interactions

Investigate W wall erosion, fuel retention, and particle recycling under the condition of fully metallic walls without coating, explore effective heat and particle exhaust methods using the new V-shaped upper divertor, and develop efficient boronization techniques and reliable feedback control technologies.

 2.6 Energetic particle physics

Investigating synergistic heating mechanisms of neutral beam injection and ion cyclotron waves, the phase-space transport and loss mechanisms of energetic particles induced by various instabilities and three-dimensional fields, the influence of energetic particles on turbulence and zonal flows and the resulting confinement improvement, as well as the interaction between lost energetic particles and the first wall.

IMPORTANT： Proposals following the topics below will be supported with higher priority:

1) Exploration of hybrid operation scenario towards BEST Q~1. Based on the EAST upgrade, develop an integrated operational solution for BEST Q~1 mission by leveraging the enhanced radio-frequency wave heating capability*.

*Please refer to the "BEST Research Plan" for details, which can be downloaded from https://pan.cstcloud.cn/s/Avp6eUOTXU (Extract password： Best)

2) Realization of long-pulse H-mode operation for the new ITER research plan.

Demonstrate long-pulse high-confinement mode operation under tungsten divertor and first-wall conditions without coating, aligned with the new ITER research plan.

3) Frontier physics associated with burning plasmas. For burning plasmas, on multi-scale effects of fishbone modes, Alfvén eigenmodes, zonal flows, and turbulence on energetic particle confinement; transport characteristics of multi-ion species and helium ash exhaust; and the compatibility of fast particles with internal transport barriers, etc.