Magnetohydrodynamic stability at the edge region in H-mode plasmas with long edge-localized-mode-free phases in the large helical device

Clear suppression of magnetic fluctuations associated with resistive interchange modes (RICs) is observed during long edge-localized-mode (ELM)-free phases of the H-mode plasma in an outward-shifted configuration of the Large Helical Decice, in which a steep pressure gradient is generated at the plasma edge in the magnetic hill. The ELM-free H-phase is interrupted by large amplitude ELMs which are thought to be induced through nonlinear evolution of the RICs having m = 1/n = 1 dominant component (m: poloidal mode number, n: toroidal one). The m = 1/n = 1 RIC amplitude is enhanced about 10 times compared with the H-phase level during each ELM. In most of the H-mode shots, the final ELM-free phase returns to L-phase by a large amplitude ELM. In the L-phase, the RIC amplitude is enhanced by a factor of similar to 3 compared with that in the H-phase, although the edge pressure gradient is reduced considerably. Linear resistive magnetohydrodynamic stability analysis is attempted using experimentally obtained equilibrium profiles. From the numerical analysis, the distance between the location of the steepest pressure gradient and the main mode resonance surface, i.e. the rotational transform l = 1, is found to be important for a large growth of the m = 1/n = 1 RIC in the H-phase.