Propagation of LH waves in plasma in presence of M=1.2 magnetic island

The effect of magnetic islands on the propagation of lower hybrid waves is investigated by using a recently developed asymptotic technique which allows explicit analytical solutions of the problem. Near the mode rational surface the model equilibrium is a slab with a single helicity perturbation corresponding to a m=1 or m=2 island. Particular attention is focused on the deformation of the wave trajectory and on the variation of the parallel component of the wavevector inside the island which can affect tha local absorption of the wave