A Tokamak is a toroidal plasma heated to over 50 million degrees Celsius. The plasma current serves to generate the helical component of the magnetic field necessary for equilibrium. (Image courtesy of NASA.)
Instructor(s)
Prof. Jeffrey Freidberg
MIT Course Number
22.615
As Taught In
Spring 2007
Level
Graduate
Course Description
Course Features
Course Description
This course discusses MHD equilibria in cylindrical, toroidal, and noncircular tokamaks. It covers derivation of the basic MHD model from the Boltzmann equation, use of MHD equilibrium theory in poloidal field design, MHD stability theory including the Energy Principle, interchange instability, ballooning modes, second region of stability, and external kink modes. Emphasis is on discovering configurations capable of achieving good confinement at high beta.