Instability of Alfven waves in a toroidal configuration

Book · Mon Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1973

OSTI ID:4374379

Samain, A

From third international symposium on toroidal plasma confinement; Garching, Germany (26 Mar 1973). The torsional MHD Alfven waves may be driven unstable in a magnetically confined plasma by the mechanism of interchange. This instability is a reactive one in the sense that the motion of the particles along the lines of force, as well as the cyclotronic motion, remains adiabatic in the presence of the wave. It is shown that in a configuration such as a tokamak where it has been suppressed (by magnetic shear or magnetic well), torsional Alfven waves may become unstable by a Landau effect which effects the parallel motion of one class of resonant ions. The electric field of the wave, while transverse to the static magnetic field, draws energy from the particles by acting along the guiding-center velocities. (GE)

• Research Organization: CEN, Fontenay-aux-Roses, France
• NSA Number: NSA-29-009199
• OSTI ID: 4374379
• Country of Publication: Germany
• Language: English

Related Subjects

*PLASMA INSTABILITY-- ALFVEN WAVES
*TOKAMAK DEVICES-- ALFVEN WAVES
CYCLOTRON FREQUENCY
ELECTRIC FIELDS
LANDAU DAMPING
MAGNETIC FIELDS
N70700* --Physics--Controlled Thermonuclear Research-- Stability
TOROIDAL CONFIGURATION