Exploration of operational scenarios of the SPIDER accelerator

In the framework of the research on auxiliary heating systems needed for the ITER experiment, the development of a 1 MeV negative ion based neutral beam injector plays a fundamental role. In order to develop this complex device and assist ITER during its operation a dedicated Neutral beam test facility is under construction in Padova, Italy. Together with the full test bed injector, this facility will host the SPIDER experiment (Source for Production of Ion of Deuterium Extracted from an Rf plasma) devoted to better investigate the physical processes occurring in large negative ion plasma sources and designed to extract and accelerate 355 A/m² of hydrogen (285 A/m² deuterium) up to 100 keV. In order to have a characterization of all the expected scenarios that the SPIDER accelerator can experience during its operation, an exhaustive exploration was carried out by means of advanced numerical tools, with the purpose of having a better evaluation of the real performances of the system and supporting its operational phase, helping the experimental data interpretation and the identification of dangerous operating conditions. The present works offers a review of this kind of analyses, presenting the most important scenarios and discussing the differences among them.