Electromagnetic instabilities in high-β anti-loss-cone plasmas

Abstract

The stability of electromagnetic drift waves in high-β anti-loss-cone plasmas is investigated. These waves with propagation transverse to the external magnetic field are found to be unstable provided ρ > ρc, where ρ is the parameter which characterizes the strength of the anti-loss-cone. The growth rates associated with this instability (which may be called the anti-loss-cone drift instability) are ˜ 0·1Ωe and they increase with the strength of the anti-loss-cone.