q measurements during sawtooth oscillations in a low q tokamak

The central safety factor during a sawtooth oscillation in material limiter tokamak discharges (scrapeoff plates inserted to the separatrix) in the TOKAPOLE II poloidal divertor tokamak [Phys. Rev. Lett. 49, 734 (1982)] is measured to be significantly less than 1 (approximately 0.7) during a sawtooth oscillation. This result is identical to that observed earlier in the same device in magnetic limiter discharges. Thus the presence of scrapeoff plasma beyond the divertor separatrix is not responsible for the absence of total reconnection.