Design and implementation of Qt-based neutral beam injection control and monitoring system for negative ion sources

Neutral beam injection (NBI) systems are critical to fusion research and require precise control and monitoring of negative ion sources. Existing solutions often have limitations in terms of development efficiency and adaptability.

This study aims to design and implement a cost-effective, highly scalable NBI control and monitoring system for negative ion sources. The system is specifically designed to address the inherent issues of traditional NI-PXIe hardware and LabVIEW-FPGA architectures, such as lengthy development cycles, high hardware costs, and limited scalability.

A modular control solution is proposed, utilizing a domestically produced PXIe platform, a Linux real-time system, and the Qt5.9 framework. By replacing imported components with locally sourced hardware and leveraging optimizations in the Linux real-time kernel, precise control is achieved. A multi-threaded control program is developed using C++ object-oriented programming to enhance system flexibility and overcome scalability limitations.

Experimental verification confirmed that the system achieved microsecond-level synchronisation accuracy. Compared with traditional methods, this solution has significant advantages in scalability and control accuracy, meeting all experimental requirements for time-sensitive operations in negative ion source NBI.

The Qt-based system successfully addresses the limitations of traditional NBI control architectures in terms of cost and scalability. By adopting localized hardware, Linux real-time system, and modular C++ design, the system provides reliable performance for complex ion source experiments. This approach establishes a flexible framework that can adapt to further enhancements in future NBI systems.