Editorial for special issue on H-mode physics and transport barriers

[摘要] This special issue (SI) of Nuclear Fusion contains a set of papers considering indispensablequestions of the operational scenarios with edge and internal transport barriers in magnetically confined plasmas. Scenarios with barriers, i.e. the H-mode and ITB scenarios, areplanned for the operation of experimental thermonuclear reactor ITER and thus, are of greatimportance for the fusion community.Operation scenarios with transport barriers (TBs) provide essential enhancementin energy confinement which is prerequisite of an economically viable fusion reactor.However, existence of TBs causes significant complications connected with the necessity tomaintain stationary pressure and current density profiles compatible with stability conditions in both the core and edge areas. In a latter case, a violation of the stability conditionresults in harmful effects of edge localized modes (ELMs) on plasma facing components.Therefore, development of means needed for ELM suppression or mitigation are criticalissues for reactor physics.