Nonlinear dynamics of the filamentation of the resistive instability of a current-carrying plasma

Abstract

AbstractThe filamentation of the resistive instability in a weakly ionized quasi-neutral current-carrying plasma in the diffusion frequency region in the nonlinear regime is investigated. By using the magnetohydrodynamics equations and Ampere's law and assuming that the plasma is non-isothermal and inhomogeneous, the evolution of the magnetic field diffusion into the plasma is described by the Lienard nonlinear differential equation. Furthermore, it is shown that the departure of the profiles of the magnetic field and electron density variation from a sinusoidal shape in the nonlinear regime and a transverse filamentation and density steepening can occur in the static limit. Also, it is shown that the shape of the transverse filamentation can vary in this regime depending on the gradient of the magnetic field.