© IOP Publishing Ltd 1998
This book is devoted to the theory of instabilities inherent in a plasma within toroidal confinement systems. Such systems, primarily the tokamaks, arc suggested as ihe most promising devices for controlled thermonuclear fusion.
The main emphasis is given to effects of toroidicity and high plasma pressure. Allowing for these effects, the subject of the book is, in particular, all the varieties of ideal inteal magnctohydrodynamic (MHD) modes: the Mercier, ballooning and kink modes, and the related resistive modes. In addition, the author considers the MHD modes in the presence of effects lying beyond the scope of the standard MHD theory: plasma pressure anisotropy, trapped particles, neoclassical and drift effects. The book also includes the theory of scmicollisional drift-MHD modes, the interaction of high-energy particles with MHD modes and toroidicity-induced Alfven eigenmodes, and resistive-wall mode instability.
Attention is focused on instabilities in tokamaks. In addition, systems with a spatial magnetic axis, including the Drakon, and stellarators with helical windings are considered.
The analysis of specific types of instability in a toroidal plasma is preceded by a presentation of the fundamentals of the equilibrium theory of such a plasma and the theory of inteal MHD modes in a cylindrical plasma.
A need was identified to summarize the large amount of information on the topic of instabilities. This information is scattered throughout many papers on certain special subjects on the theory of toroidal-plasma instabilities. This book aims to treat it from a unified point of view.
The book is based on analytical approaches and should therefore be useful for everybody who is interested in this topic. The author starts with the fundamental principles, so that no special knowledge of plasma physics is necessary before reading the book. It will therefore be useful for researchers, postgraduates, high-school teachers and students specializing in plasma physics and controlled fusion.
The book contains reviews of publications on every type of instability considered, which should help the reader to understand this topic.
This book is devoted to the theory of instabilities inherent in a plasma within toroidal confinement systems. Such systems, primarily the tokamaks, arc suggested as ihe most promising devices for controlled thermonuclear fusion.
The main emphasis is given to effects of toroidicity and high plasma pressure. Allowing for these effects, the subject of the book is, in particular, all the varieties of ideal inteal magnctohydrodynamic (MHD) modes: the Mercier, ballooning and kink modes, and the related resistive modes. In addition, the author considers the MHD modes in the presence of effects lying beyond the scope of the standard MHD theory: plasma pressure anisotropy, trapped particles, neoclassical and drift effects. The book also includes the theory of scmicollisional drift-MHD modes, the interaction of high-energy particles with MHD modes and toroidicity-induced Alfven eigenmodes, and resistive-wall mode instability.
Attention is focused on instabilities in tokamaks. In addition, systems with a spatial magnetic axis, including the Drakon, and stellarators with helical windings are considered.
The analysis of specific types of instability in a toroidal plasma is preceded by a presentation of the fundamentals of the equilibrium theory of such a plasma and the theory of inteal MHD modes in a cylindrical plasma.
A need was identified to summarize the large amount of information on the topic of instabilities. This information is scattered throughout many papers on certain special subjects on the theory of toroidal-plasma instabilities. This book aims to treat it from a unified point of view.
The book is based on analytical approaches and should therefore be useful for everybody who is interested in this topic. The author starts with the fundamental principles, so that no special knowledge of plasma physics is necessary before reading the book. It will therefore be useful for researchers, postgraduates, high-school teachers and students specializing in plasma physics and controlled fusion.
The book contains reviews of publications on every type of instability considered, which should help the reader to understand this topic.