Welcome to the new version of CaltechAUTHORS. Login is currently restricted to library staff. If you notice any issues, please email coda@library.caltech.edu
Published March 2016 | Published
Journal Article Open

A hybrid Rayleigh-Taylor-current-driven coupled instability in a magnetohydrodynamically collimated cylindrical plasma with lateral gravity

Abstract

We present an MHD theory of Rayleigh-Taylor instability on the surface of a magnetically confined cylindrical plasma flux rope in a lateral external gravity field. The Rayleigh-Taylor instability is found to couple to the classic current-driven instability, resulting in a new type of hybrid instability that cannot be described by either of the two instabilities alone. The lateral gravity breaks the axisymmetry of the system and couples all azimuthal modes together. The coupled instability, produced by combination of helical magnetic field, curvature of the cylindrical geometry, and lateral gravity, is fundamentally different from the classic magnetic Rayleigh-Taylor instability occurring at a two-dimensional planar interface. The theory successfully explains the lateral Rayleigh-Taylor instability observed in the Caltech plasma jet experiment [Moser and Bellan, Nature 482, 379 (2012)]. Potential applications of the theory include magnetic controlled fusion, solar emerging flux, solar prominences, coronal mass ejections, and other space and astrophysical plasma processes.

Additional Information

© 2016 AIP Publishing LLC. Received 28 April 2015; accepted 18 February 2016; published online 22 March 2016. We thank Vernon Chaplin for examining the derivation and providing valuable feedback. This work was supported by the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science, Office of Fusion Energy Sciences under Award Nos. DE-FG02-04ER54755 and DE-SC0010471, by the National Science Foundation under Award No. 1059519, and by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research under Award No. FA9550-11-1-0184.

Attached Files

Published - 1.4943896.pdf

Files

1.4943896.pdf
Files (2.1 MB)
Name Size Download all
md5:68009f0091d2d1b0b1b26c00b9d42dfb
2.1 MB Preview Download

Additional details

Created:
August 20, 2023
Modified:
October 18, 2023