Overview of first Wendelstein 7-X high-performance operation

The optimized superconducting stellarator device Wendelstein 7-X (with major radius R = 5.5 m, minor radius a = 0.5 m, and 30 m(3) plasma volume) restarted operation after the assembly of a graphite heat shield and 10 inertially cooled island divertor modules. This paper reports on the results from the first high-performance plasma operation. Glow discharge conditioning and ECRH conditioning discharges in helium turned out to be important for density and edge radiation control. Plasma densities of 1-4.5 x 10(19) m(-3) with central electron temperatures 5-10 keV were routinely achieved with hydrogen gas fueling, frequently terminated by a radiative collapse. In a first stage, plasma densities up to 1.4 x 10(20) m(-3) were reached with hydrogen pellet injection and helium gas fueling. Here, the ions are indirectly heated, and at a central density of 8 . 10(19 )m(-3) a temperature of 3.4 keV with T-e/T-i = 1 was transiently accomplished, which corresponds to nT(i)(0)tau(E) = 6.4 x 10(19) keV s m(-3) with a peak diamagnetic energy of 1.1 MJ and volume-averaged normalized plasma pressure <beta > = 1.2%. The routine access to high plasma densities was opened with boronization of the first wall. After boronization, the oxygen impurity content was reduced by a factor of 10, the carbon impurity content by a factor of 5. The reduced (edge) plasma radiation level gives routinely access to higher densities without radiation collapse, e.g. well above 1 x 10(20) m(-2) line integrated density and T-e = T-i = 2 keV central temperatures at moderate ECRH power. Both X2 and O2 mode ECRH schemes were successfully applied. Core turbulence was measured with a phase contrast imaging diagnostic and suppression of turbulence during pellet injection was observed.