The role of particle sinks and sources in Alcator C-Mod detached divertor discharges

Detailed measurements of the magnitude and location of volumetric recombination occurring in the detached divertor of Alcator C-Mod tokamak [I. H. Hutchinson et al., Phys. Plasmas 1, 1511 (1994)] are presented. The drop in divertor plate ion current during detachment is due to two mechanisms: (1) volumetric recombination in the divertor plasma; and (2) reductions in the divertor ion source. Depending on plasma conditions, each of these can be the primary mechanism for the observed ion current reduction in detachment. The ion source during detachment is inferred and its magnitude is consistent with the measured divertor power flow. A scaling of the density in the divertor recombining region for L- (low confinement) mode plasmas is found, ne,r∝n̄e0.8⋅PSOL2/7. A model based on pressure variation along a flux surface during detachment is consistent with the main features of this scaling.