Finite ion Larmor radius effects in magnetic curvature-driven Rayleigh-Taylor instability

• Incomplete finite ion Larmor radius stabilization of the magnetic Rayleigh-Taylor (RT)instability is investigated. In contrast to the previous studies the effects of both the gravity and magnetic field curvature are taken into account. New model hydrodynamic equations describing nonlinear flute waves with arbitrary spatial scales have been derived. Particular attention is paid to the waves with spatial scales of the order of the ion Larmor radius. In the linear approximation a Fourier transform of these equations yields a generalized dispersion relation for flute waves. The condition for gravity and magnetic curvature at which the instability cannot be stabilized by the finite ion Larmor radius effects is found. It is shown that in the absence of the magnetic curvature the complete stabilization arises due to the cancellation of gravitational and diamagnetic drifts. However, when the magnetic curvature drift is taken into account this synchronization is violated and the RT instability is stabilized at more complex conditions. Furthermore, the dependence of the instability growth rate on the equilibrium plasma parameters is investigated.

Keyword

Rayleigh-Taylor instability

flute waves

nonlinear waves

Publication and Content Type

vet (subject category)

kon (subject category)