Torsatron equilibrium and stability studies

Equilibrium and stability results are presented for the Advanced Toroidal Facility (ATF) device. The results of three-dimensional equilibrium calculations and free boundary average method calculations are shown to be in good agreement with previous fixed boundary average method results. These favorable comparisons serve as a valuable validation of the simple and computationally efficient fixed boundary average method. Stability calculations for the free boundary average method equilibria are also in good agreement with fixed boundary calculations, showing instability only when the plasma is shifted inward with an applied vertical field