Stability of tearing modes in tokamak plasmas

Exponentially growing tearing modes in Rijnhuizen Tokamak Project plasmas.

The local measurement of the island width w, around the resonant surface, allowed a direct test of the extended Rutherford model [P. H. Rutherford, PPPL Report-2277 (1985)], describing the evolution of radiation-induced tearing modes prior to disruptions of tokamak plasmas. It is found that this model accounts very well for the observed exponential growth and supports radiation losses as being ...

Drift-tearing magnetic islands in tokamak plasmas

A systematic fluid theory of nonlinear magnetic island dynamics in conventional low, large aspect-ratio, circular cross-section tokamak plasmas is developed using an extended magnetohydrodynamics model that incorporates diamagnetic flows, ion gyroviscosity, fast parallel electron heat transport, the ion sound wave, the drift wave, and average magnetic field-line curvature. The model excludes th...

Strong scattering of high power millimeter waves in tokamak plasmas with tearing modes.

In tokamak plasmas with a tearing mode, strong scattering of high power millimeter waves, as used for heating and noninductive current drive, is shown to occur. This new wave scattering phenomenon is shown to be related to the passage of the O point of a magnetic island through the high power heating beam. The density determines the detailed phasing of the scattered radiation relative to the O-...

Hypersonic drift-tearing magnetic islands in tokamak plasmas

A two-fluid theory of long wavelength, hypersonic, drift-tearing magnetic islands in low-collisionality, lowplasmas possessing relatively weak magnetic shear is developed. The model assumes both slab geometry and cold ions, and neglects electron temperature and equilibrium current gradient effects. The problem is solved in three asymptotically matched regions. The “inner region” contains the is...

Supersonic drift-tearing magnetic islands in tokamak plasmas