Resonant field amplification near the RWM stability boundary in a tokamak

Evolution of a resistive wall mode (RWM)—a magnetic field perturbation produced by a plasma and partially stabilized by a conducting wall—is considered. It is assumed that there is a small resonant harmonic in the spectrum of the static error field. It is shown that the effect of this harmonic on the dynamics of stable RWMs increases as the plasma approaches the RWM stability boundary. The error field is “amplified” during the transition through this boundary. The smaller the rotation velocity of the perturbation and the longer the time during which the plasma stays near the stability boundary, the stronger this amplification is.