Nonlinear drift tearing mode: Hard onset and stabilization mechanisms
Galeev A. A., Zelenyi L. M., Kuznetsova M. M.
A nonlinear theory is derived for the development of magnetic perturbations in collisionless configurations with magnetic shear. The dynamics of the ions and of the electrostatic fields, which determine the stabilization of the mode, is incorporated in the analysis of the evolution of the instability. The drift tearing mode is found to have metastable properties: In the nonlinear stage, even perturbations of finite amplitude which are stable in the linear stage may grow.