Stability of a reversed field pinch with resistive and distant boundaries

Abstract

The linear magnetohydrodynamic stability of current-driven modes is evaluated for a reversed field pinch in which the plasma is bounded by a thin resistive shell surrounded by a vacuum region out to a radius at which a perfectly conducting wall is situated. The effects of variation of the shell resistivity and wall proximity are investigated. Growth rates of tearing modes and kink modes are calculated by analytical solution based on the modified Bessel function model for the equilibrium. Relevance to experiments is discussed.