Abstract
Benign termination is a promising strategy for the controlled dissipation of runaway electron (RE) beam energy, aiming to mitigate damage to plasma-facing components (PFCs). In TCV, the final collapse of a benign termination experiment is triggered by compressing the RE beam onto the central column, which induces a rapid loss of confinement.This study focuses on the energy balance of this collapse phase, during which energy stored in the RE beam and magnetic fields is redistributed via localized deposition, radiation, and coupling to structures. The available RE energy is estimated by combining radiated power measurements, magnetic coupling estimates, and localized energy deposition on the inner wall. Thanks to the controlled nature of the collapse, deposition on the inner column is well diagnosed via IR thermography and embedded calorimetry, enabling both energy quantification and estimates of deposition depth. Comparisons with GEANT4 simulations of RE-wall interactions help constrain the RE energy spectrum. Additionally, simultaneous IR views confirm toroidal symmetry of the deposition pattern.