Nonlocal analysis of the lower-hybrid-drift instability in theta-pinch plasmas

A nonlocal analysis of the lower-hybrid-drift instability is presented for theta-pinch plasmas. For diffuse equilibrium profiles, nonlocal and local theories are shown to be in excellent agreement (with respect to maximum growth rate, corresponding l value, and radius of localization) for the fastest growing mode. The lower-hybrid-drift instability is also shown to provide a possible mechanism for predicting the wavelength and radius of localization of the flute perturbations observed experimentally in scylla 1-B.