A General Physical Model for RMF Current Drive

Abstract

Rotating magnetic fields (RMF) have been used successfuly to drive steady currents in plasmas in many experiments. Some recent experimental and theoretical results did not seem to agree with the standard model based on assuming that the electrons are 'tied' to the lines of the RMF. A more general model based on the concept of flux preserving motion is developed in this paper. It appears that this model provides a unified approach for predicting the qualitative features of RMF current drive under a variety of conditions.