In the Rijnhuizen Tokamak Project plasmas, a transient rise of the core ele
ctron temperature is observed when hydrogen pellets are injected tangential
ly to induce fast cooling of the peripheral region. High-resolution Thomson
scattering measurements show that the T-e rise is associated with large te
mperature gradients in the region 1 < q < 2. This region acts as a layer of
transiently increased thermal resistivity (transport barrier) when probed
by fast heat pulses from modulated electron cyclotron heating.