KINETIC INVESTIGATION OF THE EFFECT OF LOWER-HYBRID CURRENT DRIVE ON TEARING MODE-INSTABILITY

Effect of lower-hybrid current drive on tearing mode instability is investigated in a drift kinetic formalism. In collisional regime the co-driven current plays a stabilizing role to tearing mode but a destabilizing role to drift tearing mode. A competitive effect among the gradients of density, temperature and driven current at the rational surface may exist. In semicollisional regime, lower hybrid current drive increases the growth rate of tearing mode and reduces the growth rate of drift tearing mode.