Two‐dimensional kinetic field‐reversed equilibria

A two‐dimensional kinetic description of field‐reversed equilibria has been developed. Three equilibrium models are presented: a kinetic model, a rigidly rotating model, and a magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) model. The kinetic model of equilibrium provides spatial distributions of the macroscopic moments, including velocity shear, that are in good agreement with experimental observations. The rigidly rotating and MHD models allow more general pressure profiles than previous studies. These models, which allow the computation of a wide range of equilibria, suggest that for parameters typical of the current experiments kinetic modifications of the equilibrium are small; however, they may be important if the field‐reversed configuration is interacting strongly with a magnetic mirror. Also, the ability to compute kinetic equilibria makes possible a self‐consistent examination of the stability of field‐reversed configurations, which is believed to be strongly influenced by kinetic effects.