Equilibria and stability in partially relaxed plasma-vacuum systems

We develop a multiple interface variational model, comprising multiple Taylor-relaxed plasma regions separated by ideal MHD barriers. The magnetic field in each region is Beltrami, ∇ × B ≤ μB, and the pressure constant. Between regions the pressure, field strength, and rotational transform may have step changes at the ideal barrier. A principle motivation is the development of a mathematically rigorous ideal MHD model to describe intrinsically 3D equilibria, with nonzero internal pressure, using robust KAM surfaces as the barriers. This article chiefly addresses whether the stability of two interface configurations with continuous rotational transform, but vanishing interface separation, is different from the stability of a single interface configuration with jump in the rotational transform. To make the problem analytically tractable, we derive the equilibria and stability of a multi-interface plasma in a periodic cylinder, generalizing the cylindrical treatment of Kaiser and Uecker (2004 Q. J. Mech. Appl. Math. 57 1-17). For two interfaces with no jump in rotational transform, we show that one eigenmode has in-phase interface displacements, and an eigenvalue that converges to the single barrier case in the limit of vanishing interface width. The complementary eigenmode is out-of-phase, and highly unstable. Physically, the unstable eigenmode is driven by the parallel current, and caused by the high shear required to match the different rotational transform on each interface. In the limit that the interface separation vanishes, the shear and parallel current density become infinite, and the parallel current between the interfaces nonzero. Surfaces with out-of-phase displacements will then collide, unless the amplitude goes to zero as the interface separation goes to zero. These results suggest the hypothesis that KAM barriers with different irrational rotational transform on either side may be allowable without violating nonlinear stability.