Three-Dimensional Particle Simulation Study on Stabilization of the FRC Tilting Instability

By carrying out a three-dimensional nonlinear particle simulation in the cylindrical coordinates it is disclosed that ion kinetic effects act to stabilize the FRC tilting instability and to form an anisotropic temperature distribution. For the case of bar{s} approx 1 a large number of ions execute a large amplitude oscillatory motion around the field-null line and carry most of the ion toroidal current, where bar{s} measures the number of ion gyroradii over the radial distance between the magnetic separatrix line and the field-null line. It is found that this motion, which is called a meandering motion, plays an important role in keeping the FRC plasma stable against tilt disruption and in forming the temperature anisotropy