A physical model of Mirnov oscillations and plasma disruptions

A physical model is proposed which accounts for the general behaviour of Mirnov oscillations and plasma disruptions in tokamak devices. The model also accounts for the stability of those devices which operate with edge safety factors less than 1.5. The model is based on the propagation of localized torsional Alfven and ion acoustic wavepackets. These packets remain phase coherent for considerable distances and are guided along helical field lines in toroidal plasmas, leading to the formation of standing waves on those field lines which close on themselves after one or more toroidal revolutions. Standing waves are driven resonantly on the rational surfaces by fluctuations in the poloidal field, causing localized heating and hence filamentation of the plasma current. This model indicates that Mirnov oscillations are produced by standing acoustic waves, while plasma disruptions occur as a result of the formation of MHD unstable current filaments