Plasma Theory

3 credits

Equilibrium, stability, and confinement. Classical transport, collisionless and resistive skin depths. Ideal MHD equations formally derived and properties of plasmas in the ideal limit are studied. Straight and toroidal equilibrium. Linear stability analysis with examples. Taylor minimum energy principle. Prerequisite: either A A 405, A A 556, A A 557, ESS 576, or GPHYS 537. Offered: Sp, even years.