Neoclassical tearing modes in Tokamak Fusion Test Reactor experiments. I. Measurements of magnetic islands and Δ′

Tearing-type modes are observed in most high confinement operation regimes in the Tokamak Fusion Test Reactor (TFTR) [Nucl. Fusion 35, 1429 (1995)]. Three different methods are used to measure the magnetic island widths: external magnetic coils, internal temperature fluctuation from electron cyclotron emission (ECE) diagnostics and an experiment where the plasma major radius is rapidly shifted (“Jog” experiments). A good agreement between the three methods is observed. Numerical and analytic calculations of Δ′ (the tearing instability index) are compared with an experimental measurement of Δ′ using the tearing mode eigenfunction mapped from the jog data. The obtained negative Δ′ indicates that the observed tearing modes cannot be explained by the classical current-gradient-driven tearing theory.