Formation, spin-up, and stability of field-reversed configurations

Formation, spontaneous spin-up, and stability of theta-pinch formed field-reversed configurations are studied self-consistently in three dimensions with a multiscale hybrid model that treats all plasma ions as full-orbit collisional macroparticles and the electrons as a massless quasineutral fluid. The end-to-end hybrid simulations reveal poloidal profiles of implosion-driven fast toroidal plasma rotation and demonstrate three well-known discharge regimes as a function of experimental parameters: the decaying stable configuration, the tilt unstable configuration, and the nonlinear evolution of a fast growing tearing mode.