ALBERT

Description: The stability of a long scale equilibrium vortex structure to short scale perturbations is studied in a strongly coupled dusty plasma in the framework of a generalized hydrodynamic model. It is shown that the free energy associated with the velocity shear of the vortex can drive secondary instabilities consisting of transverse shear waves when the resonance condition between the vortex rotation frequency and the secondary wave frequency is met. Such a process can transfer energy from the long scale vortex to the short scale secondary wave and thereby provide a saturation mechanism for long scale vortices in plasmas in a manner analogous to that in neutral fluids.

Description: A laser produced high-Z plasma in which an energy balance is achieved due to radiation emission and radiative heat transfer supports ion acoustic instability. A linear dispersion relation is derived, and instability is compared to the radiation cooling instability [R. G. Evans, Plasma Phys. Controlled Fusion 27 , 751 (1985)]. Under conditions of indirect drive fusion experiments, the driving term for the instability is the radiative heat flux and, in particular, the density dependence of the radiative heat conductivity. A specific example of thermal Bremsstrahlung radiation source has been considered. This instability may lead to plasma jet formation and anisotropic x-ray generation, thus affecting inertial confinement fusion related experiments.

Description: The present paper is devoted to simulation of nonlinear disintegration of a localized perturbation into ion-acoustic solitons train in a plasma with hot electrons and cold ions. A Gaussian initial perturbation is used to model the localized perturbation. For this purpose, first, we reduce fluid system of equations to a Korteweg de-Vries equation by the following well-known assumptions. (i) On the ion-acoustic evolution time-scale, the electron velocity distribution function (EVDF) is assumed to be stationary. (ii) The calculation is restricted to small amplitude cases. Next, in order to generalize the model to finite amplitudes cases, the evolution of EVDF is included. To this end, a hybrid code is designed to simulate the case, in which electrons dynamics is governed by Vlasov equation, while cold ions dynamics is, like before, studied by the fluid equations. A comparison between the two models shows that although the fluid model is capable of demonstrating the general features of the process, to have a better insight into the relevant physics resulting from the evolution of EVDF, the use of kinetic treatment is of great importance.

Description: In earlier works, we used spheres of various sizes as impedance probes in demonstrating a method of determining plasma potential, φ p , when the probe radius is much larger than the Debye length, λ D . The basis of the method in those works [Walker et al ., Phys. Plasmas 13 , 032108 (2006); ibid . 15 , 123506 (2008); ibid . 17 , 113503 (2010)] relies on applying a small amplitude signal of fixed frequency to a probe in a plasma and, through network analyzer-based measurements, determining the complex reflection coefficient, Γ , for varying probe bias, V b . The frequency range of the applied signal is restricted to avoid sheath resonant effects and ion contributions such that ω pi  ≪ ω ≪ ω pe , where ω pi is the ion plasma frequency and ω pe is the electron plasma frequency. For a given frequency and applied bias, both Re( Z ac ) and Im( Z ac ) are available from Γ . When Re( Z ac ) is plotted versus V b , a minimum predicted by theory occurs at φ p [Walker et al ., Phys. Plasmas 17 , 113503 (2010)]. In addition, Im (Z ac ) appears at, or very near, a maximum at φ p . As n e decreases and the sheath expands, the minimum becomes harder to discern. The purpose of this work is to demonstrate that when using network analyzer-based measurements, Γ itself and Im (Z ac ) and their derivatives are useful as accompanying indicators to Re( Z ac ) in these difficult cases. We note the difficulties encountered by the most commonly used plasma diagnostic, the Langmuir probe. Spherical probe data is mainly used in this work, although we present limited data for a cylinder and a disk. To demonstrate the effect of lowered density as a function of probe geometry, we compare the cylinder and disk using only the indicator Re( Z ac ).

Description: Farley-Buneman modes are an example of the collisional instability, which is thought to be the dominant mechanism for the irregularities in low ionosphere region. Despite high collisionality due to electron-neutral and ion-neutral collisions, the kinetic effects associated with finite temperature are important for determination of the mode frequencies and growth rate. This is especially important for ion component that is largely unmagnetized due to low ion cyclotron frequency. The ion thermal effects are strongly pronounced for shorter wavelengths and are crucial for the growth rate cut-off at high wavenumbers. We develop an extended fluid model for ion dynamics to incorporate the effects of ion thermal motion. The model is based on the extended MHD model that includes the evolution equations for higher order moments such as ion viscosity and ion heat flux. We also develop the generalized Chapman-Enskog closure model that provides exact linear closures based on the linearized kinetic equation. The results of these models are compared and tested against the linear kinetic model. The dispersion of Farley-Buneman modes and growth rate behavior are investigated in the short wavelength region.

Description: Alternative acceleration technologies are currently under development for cost-effective, robust, compact, and efficient solutions. One such technology is plasma wakefield acceleration, driven by either a charged particle or laser beam. However, the potential issues must be studied in detail. In this paper, the emittance evolution of a witness beam through elastic scattering from gaseous media and under transverse focusing wakefields is studied.

Description: The potential of a laser-ablation plasma was controlled stably up to +2 kV by using external ring electrodes. A stable electron sheath was formed between the plasma and the external electrodes by placing the ring electrodes away from the boundary of the drifting plasma. The plasma kept the potential for a few μ s regardless of the flux change of the ablation plasma. We also found that the plasma potential changed with the expansion angle of the plasma from the target. By changing the distance between the plasma boundary and the external electrodes, we succeeded in controlling the potential of laser-ablation plasma.

Description: A pulsed, positively biased gridded inertial electrostatic confinement device has been investigated experimentally, using Doppler broadened spectra and current and voltage traces as primary diagnostics. In the high current and energy regime explored in this paper resulting from the removal of the series ballast resistance from the external biasing circuit, large amplitude oscillations in the plasma current and potential were observed within 100 ns of the discharge onset. These oscillations are attributed to the nonlinear and saturated Buneman instability, characterised by a locked oscillation frequency as a function of increasing anode potential. The saturated Buneman instability is known to exhibit ion mass independent behaviour and cause electron trapping, resulting in a transient spatio-temporal virtual cathode and ponderomotive ion confinement, as evidenced by broadened spectra when operated at high currents.

Description: We identify and study new nonlinear axisymmetric equilibria with incompressible flow of arbitrary direction satisfying a generalized Grad Shafranov equation by extending the symmetry analysis presented by Cicogna and Pegoraro [Phys. Plasmas 22 , 022520 (2015)]. In particular, we construct a typical tokamak D-shaped equilibrium with peaked toroidal current density, monotonically varying safety factor, and sheared electric field.

Description: We have re-examined the pump-coupling term of the growth rate, in the fluid-Maxwell theory for the weak-damping limit of the two-plasmon decay instability of an electromagnetic wave (pump) in a homogeneous plasma. We found that the maximum pump coupling is obtained as ( k 0 v 0 / 4 ) ( 2 T L / T − 1 ) for electron temperatures T exceeding T L [ ≡ ( 2 / 9 ) ( 1 − 4 n / n c ) ( m c 2 ) ] . The well-known result for the pump coupling as k 0 v 0 / 4 is only valid for T 〈 T L . We found that the configuration of electron plasma waves is described by a lemniscate (an 8-shaped curve) for T 〉 T L and by a hyperbola for T 〈 T L . Thus, the pump coupling is reduced by electron heating and vanishes at the temperature equal to 2 T L . The temperature-dependent pump coupling can occur even for a relatively cold plasma because the boundary temperature T L can be small if the electron density n is sufficiently close to the quarter critical ( n c / 4 ) . Here, k 0 is the pump wavenumber, v 0 is the velocity amplitude of an electron oscillating under the pump electric field, n c ( ≡ ω 0 2 m / 4 π e 2 ) is the critical density, m is the electron particle mass, c is the speed of light in free space, ω 0 is the pump angular frequency, and e is the electron particle charge.

Description: The working hypothesis for the origin of edge-localized-mode stabilization is that Resonant Magnetic Perturbations (RMPs) increase transport in the pedestal, thus lowering the pressure gradient below the ideal MHD threshold. Large-scale vortex-flows matching the RMP helicity were observed experimentally [N. Vianello et al ., Plasma Phys. Controlled Fusion 57 , 014027 (2015)]. We derive and solve numerically a 1D model for the generation of long-lived vortex-flows in presence of RMPs. We show that, in presence of RMPs, zonal flows are damped and partially transfer their energy to a resonant vortex-flow pattern. The resulting vortex-flow has a multiscale nature with a fast-varying fine-structure set by zonal flows and a slowly-varying radial envelope with a resonant character. The model predicts that the saturated vortex-flow energy E scales with RMP amplitude as E ∼ δ B r B α with α ≃ 1.9 . This novel type of nonlinearly driven non-axisymmetric flow has a radial—streamer like—component, and is therefore a candidate for increased convective transport.

Description: The atmospheric pressure glow discharges (APGD) with dual excitations in terms of pulsed voltage and pulse-modulation radio frequency (rf) power are studied experimentally between two parallel plates electrodes. Pulse-modulation applied in rf APGD temporally separates the discharge into repetitive discharge bursts, between which the high voltage pulses are introduced to ignite sub-microsecond pulsed discharge. The discharge characteristics and spatio-temporal evolution are investigated by means of current voltage characteristics and time resolved imaging, which suggests that the introduced pulsed discharge assists the ignition of rf discharge burst and reduces the maintain voltage of rf discharge burst. Furtherly, the time instant of pulsed discharge between rf discharge bursts is manipulated to study the ignition dynamics of rf discharge burst.

Description: The dual-mode resonant instabilities of the dust-acoustic surface wave propagating at the plasma-vacuum interfaces of the generalized Lorentzian dusty plasma slab are kinetically investigated. The dispersion relation is derived for the two propagation modes: symmetric and anti-symmetric waves. We have found that the temporal growth rate of the resonant instability increases with an increase of the slab thickness for both modes. Especially, the nonthermality of plasmas enhances the growth rate of the anti-symmetric resonant wave, and the nonthermal effect is enhanced as the slab thickness is increased. It is also found that the growth rate increases with increasing angular frequency of the rotating dust grain due to the enhanced resonant energy exchange.

Description: A unique sequence of 120 almost identical plasmas in the Joint European Torus (JET) recently provided two orders of magnitude more statistically equivalent data than ever previously available. The purpose was to study movement of eroded plasma-facing material from JET's new Beryllium wall, but it has allowed the statistical detection of otherwise unobservable phenomenon. This includes a sequence of resonant-like waiting times between edge-localised plasma instabilities (ELMs), instabilities that must be mitigated or avoided in large magnetically confined plasmas such as those planned for ITER. Here, we investigate the cause of this phenomenon, using the unprecedented quantity of data to produce a detailed picture of the plasma's behaviour. After combining the data, oscillations are clearly observable in the plasma's vertical position, in edge losses of ions, and in Beryllium II (527 nm) light emissions. The oscillations are unexpected, are not obvious in data from a single pulse alone, and are all clearly correlated with each other. They are likely to be caused by a small vertical oscillation that the plasma control system is not reacting to prevent, but a more complex explanation is possible. The clearly observable but unexpected link between small changes in the plasma's position and changes to edge-plasma transport and stability suggest that these characteristics cannot always be studied in isolation. It also suggests new opportunities for ELM mitigation and control that may exist.

Description: Mode conversion of fast waves in the ion cyclotron range of frequencies (ICRF) is known to result in current drive and flow drive under optimised conditions, which may be utilized to control plasma profiles and improve fusion plasma performance. To describe these processes accurately in a realistic toroidal geometry, numerical simulations are essential. Quantitative comparison of these simulations and the actual experimental measurements is important to validate their predictions and to evaluate their limitations. The phase contrast imaging (PCI) diagnostic has been used to directly detect the ICRF waves in the Alcator C-Mod tokamak. The measurements have been compared with full-wave simulations through a synthetic diagnostic technique. Recently, the frequency response of the PCI detector array on Alcator C-Mod was recalibrated, which greatly improved the comparison between the measurements and the simulations. In this study, mode converted waves for D- 3 He and D-H plasmas with various ion species compositions were re-analyzed with the new calibration. For the minority heating cases, self-consistent electric fields and a minority ion distribution function were simulated by iterating a full-wave code and a Fokker-Planck code. The simulated mode converted wave intensity was in quite reasonable agreement with the measurements close to the antenna, but discrepancies remain for comparison at larger distances.

Description: We study the impact of impurities on turbulence driven intrinsic rotation (via residual stress) in the context of the quasi-linear theory. A two-fluid formulation for main and impurity ions is employed to study ion temperature gradient modes in sheared slab geometry modified by the presence of impurities. An effective form of the parallel Reynolds stress is derived in the center of mass frame of a coupled main ion-impurity system. Analyses show that the contents and the radial profile of impurities have a strong influence on the residual stress. In particular, an impurity profile aligned with that of main ions is shown to cause a considerable reduction of the residual stress, which may lead to the reduction of turbulence driven intrinsic rotation.

Description: We present the first measurements of reaction-in-flight (RIF) neutrons in an inertial confinement fusion system. The experiments were carried out at the National Ignition Facility, using both Low Foot and High Foot drives and cryogenic plastic capsules. In both cases, the high-energy RIF ( E n 〉 15 MeV) component of the neutron spectrum was found to be about 10 −4 of the total. The majority of the RIF neutrons were produced in the dense cold fuel surrounding the burning hotspot of the capsule, and the data are consistent with a compressed cold fuel that is moderately to strongly coupled ( Γ ∼ 0.6) and electron degenerate ( θ Fermi / θ e ∼ 4). The production of RIF neutrons is controlled by the stopping power in the plasma. Thus, the current RIF measurements provide a unique test of stopping power models in an experimentally unexplored plasma regime. We find that the measured RIF data strongly constrain stopping models in warm dense plasma conditions, and some models are ruled out by our analysis of these experiments.

Description: We apply a recently developed analytical model of implosion and thermonuclear burn to fusion capsule experiments performed at the National Ignition Facility that used low-foot and high-foot laser pulse formats. Our theoretical predictions are consistent with the experimental data. Our studies, together with neutron image analysis, reveal that the adiabats of the cold fuel in both low-foot and high-foot experiments are similar. That is, the cold deuterium-tritium shells in those experiments are all in a high adiabat state at the time of peak implosion velocity. The major difference between low-foot and high-foot capsule experiments is the growth of the shock-induced instabilities developed at the material interfaces which lead to fuel mixing with ablator material. Furthermore, we have compared the NIF capsules performance with the ignition criteria and analyzed the alpha particle heating in the NIF experiments. Our analysis shows that alpha heating was appreciable only in the high-foot experiments.

Description: We present a particle-in-cell simulation of the generation of a collisionless strong shock in a dense plasma driven by an ultra-intense, plane-wave laser pulse. A linear theory analysis, based on a multi-waterbag model of the particle distributions, highlights the role of the laser-heated electrons in triggering the Weibel-like instability causing shock formation. It is demonstrated that the return-current electrons play a major role in the instability development as well as in the determination of the saturated magnetic field. By contrast, the ions are found of minor importance in driving the instability and the magnetic field fluctuations responsible for their isotropization. Finally, we show that a Weibel-mediated shock can also be generated by a focused laser pulse of large enough spot size.

Description: Theory for neoclassical toroidal plasma viscosity in the low collisionality regime is extended to the vicinity of the magnetic axis in tokamaks with broken symmetry. The toroidal viscosity is induced by particles drifting off the perturbed magnetic surface under the influence of the symmetry breaking magnetic field. In the region away from the magnetic axis, the drift orbit dynamics is governed by the bounce averaged drift kinetic equation in the low collisionality regimes. In the vicinity of the magnetic axis, it is the drift kinetic equation, averaged over the trapped particle orbits, i.e., potato orbits, that governs the drift dynamics. The orbit averaged drift kinetic equation is derived when collision frequency is low enough for trapped particles to complete their potato trajectories. The resultant equation is solved in the 1 / ν regime to obtain transport fluxes and, thus, toroidal plasma viscosity through flux-force relation. Here, ν is the collision frequency. The viscosity does not vanish on the magnetic axis, and has the same scalings as that in the region away from magnetic axis, except that the fraction of bananas is replaced by the fraction of potatoes. It also has a weak radial dependence. Modeling of plasma flow velocity V for the case where the magnetic surfaces are broken is also discussed.

Description: For the purpose of coherent high power microwave combining at high frequency band, an X-band phase-locked relativistic backward wave oscillator is presented and investigated. The phase-locking of the oscillator is accomplished by modulation of the electron beam before it reaches the oscillator. To produce a bunched beam with an acceptable injected RF power requirement, an overmoded input cavity is employed to provide initial density modulation. And a buncher cavity is introduced to further increase the modulation depth. When the beam enters the oscillator, the modulation depth is enough to lock the frequency and phase of the output microwave generated by the oscillator. Particle-in-cell simulation shows that an input power of 90 kW is sufficient to lock the frequency and phase of 1.5 GW output microwave with locking bandwidth of 60 MHz.

Description: Modulation instability of ion-acoustic waves (IAWs) is investigated in a collisionless unmagnetized one dimensional plasma, containing positive ions and electrons following the mixed nonextensive nonthermal distribution [Tribeche et al ., Phys. Rev. E 85 , 037401 (2012)]. Using the reductive perturbation technique, a nonlinear Schrödinger equation which governs the modulation instability of the IAWs is obtained. Valid range of plasma parameters has been fixed and their effects on the modulational instability discussed in detail. We find that the plasma supports both bright and dark solutions. The valid domain for the wave number k where instabilities set in varies with both nonextensive parameter q as well as non thermal parameter α . Moreover, the analysis is extended for the rational solutions of IAWs in the instability regime. Present study is useful for the understanding of IAWs in the region where such mixed distribution may exist.

Description: Elastic scattering of electrons by hydrogen atoms in a dense semiclassical hydrogen plasma for low impact energies has been studied. Differential scattering cross sections were calculated within the effective model of electron-atom interaction taking into account the effect of screening as well as the quantum mechanical effect of diffraction. The calculations were carried out on the basis of the phase-function method. The influence of the diffraction effect on the Ramsauer–Townsend effect was studied on the basis of a comparison with results made within the effective polarization model of the Buckingham type.

Description: The problem of rf current drive (CD) by pushing fast electrons with high-parallel-phase-velocity waves, such as lower-hybrid (LH) or electron-cyclotron (EC) waves, is revisited using the first and second laws, the former to retrieve the well-known one-dimensional (1D) steady-state CD efficiency, and the latter to calculate a lower bound for the rate of entropy production when approaching steady state. The laws of thermodynamics are written in a form that explicitly takes care of frictional dissipation and are thus applied to a population of fast electrons evolving under the influence of a dc electric field, rf waves, and collisions while in contact with a thermal, Maxwellian reservoir with a well-defined temperature. Besides the laws of macroscopic thermodynamics, there is recourse to basic elements of kinetic theory only, being assumed a residual dc electric field and a strong rf drive, capable of sustaining in the resonant region, where waves interact with electrons, a raised fast-electron tail distribution, which becomes an essentially flat plateau in the case of the 1D theory for LHCD. Within the 1D model, particularly suited for LHCD as it solely retains fast-electron dynamics in velocity space parallel to the ambient magnetic field, an H theorem for rf CD is also derived, which is written in different forms, and additional physics is recovered, such as the synergy between the dc and rf power sources, including the rf-induced hot conductivity, as well as the equation for electron-bulk heating. As much as possible 1D results are extended to 2D, to account for ECCD by also considering fast-electron velocity-space dynamics in the direction perpendicular to the magnetic field, which leads to a detailed discussion on how the definition of an rf-induced conductivity may depend on whether one works at constant rf current or power. Moreover, working out the collisional dissipated power and entropy-production rate written in terms of the fast-electron distribution, it is shown that the well-known formula for the steady-state CD efficiency, usually obtained from the first law in the form of power balance between the external sources and collisional losses, emerges as a lower bound for that CD figure of merit, in what can be interpreted as an instance of the second law.

Description: Self-guided nonlinear propagation of an intense laser beam through a periodic lattice of nanoparticle is studied. Using a perturbative method, a cubic nonlinear wave equation describing the laser-nanoparticle interaction in the weakly relativistic regime is derived. Transverse Eigen modes of the laser, nonlinear dispersion relation and its related group velocity are obtained. It is shown that the best fitted function to the transverse profile is Gaussian. Effect of the laser amplitude and also the ratio of nanoparticles radius to their separation on the nonlinear dispersion and amplitude profiles are investigated. It is found that the increase in the just mentioned parameters leads to the localization of transverse profile around the propagation axis.

Description: The dynamics of a wire-to-cylinder atmospheric pressure high-voltage nanosecond discharge is studied by the one-dimensional Particle-in-Cell Monte Carlo collisions model in cylindrical coordinates. The x-ray photons emitted from the anode are found to be inconsequential to the generation of dense plasma in the gap. Rather, the electron impact ionization resulting from acceleration of naturally occurring background electrons in the discharge gap are enough to explain the generation of high-density (∼10 15  cm −3 ) non-equilibrium plasma. The influence of the high-voltage rise time on the plasma parameters is discussed.

Description: The intensity of Galactic cosmic rays in the heliosphere is modulated by solar activities. The outer boundary where the solar modulation begins has always been a subject matter of debate in the cosmic-ray and heliophysics community. Various experimental methods and theoretical model calculations have been used to determine the boundary. Although the heliopause was always suspected to be the boundary, it is only until very recently after Voyager 1 had crossed the heliopause did we confirm that the boundary is indeed the heliopause. In this paper, we use a model simulation and detailed Voyager observation of cosmic rays at the heliopause crossing to show that the modulation boundary, in fact, is a fraction of an AU beyond the heliopause. Such a conclusion requires a very low turbulence level of the interstellar magnetic field in the outer heliosheath. According to the quasi-linear theory, a low level of turbulence should result in a very large diffusion coefficient parallel to the magnetic field and a very small perpendicular diffusion coefficient. For the first time, we are confident that Voyager 1 has obtained the truly pristine local interstellar cosmic-ray spectra down to the energies below 1 MeV. The cosmic-ray intensity is rapidly filtered by a thin layer of the interstellar magnetic field immediately outside of the heliopause. Its filtration amount depends on the conditions of magnetic field turbulence on the both sides of the heliopause, thus making it solar-cycle dependent as well.

Description: Flux ropes are magnetic structures of helical field lines, accompanied by spiraling currents. Commonly observed on the solar surface extending into the solar atmosphere, flux ropes are naturally occurring and have been observed by satellites in the near earth and in laboratory environments. In this experiment, a single flux rope (r = 2.5 cm, L = 1100 cm) was formed in the cylindrical, magnetized plasma of the Large Plasma Device (LaPD, L = 2200 cm, r plasma  = 30 cm, n o  = 10 12  cm −3 , T e  = 4 eV, He). The flux rope was generated by a DC discharge between an electron emitting cathode and anode. This fixes the rope at its source while allowing it to freely move about the anode. At large currents (I 〉 πr 2 B 0 c/2 L), the flux rope becomes helical in structure and oscillates about a central axis. Under varying Alfven speeds and injection current, the transition of the flux rope from stable to kink-unstable was examined. As it becomes non-linear, oscillations in the magnetic signals shift from sinusoidal to Sawtooth-like, associated with elliptical motion of the flux rope; or the signal becomes intermittent as its current density increases.

Description: A more generalized form of non-Maxwellian distribution function (that can be named as Vasyliunas–Cairns distribution function) is introduced. Its basic properties are numerically analyzed by the variation of two important parameters, namely, α (which shows the amount of energetic particles present in the plasma system) and κ (which shows the superthermality of the plasma species). It has been observed that (i) for α → 0 ( κ → ∞ ), the Vasyliunas–Cairns distribution function reduces to the Vasyliunas or κ (Cairns or nonthermal) distribution function; (ii) for α → 0 and κ → ∞ , it reduces to the Maxwellian distribution function; and (iii) the effect of the parameter α ( κ ) significantly modifies the basic properties of the Vasyliunas (Cairns) distribution function. The applications of this generalized non-Maxwellian distribution function (Vasyliunas–Cairns distribution function) in different space plasma situations are briefly discussed.

Description: Potential distributions around a slowly moving test charge are calculated by taking into account the electron-acoustic waves in an unmagnetized plasma. Considering a neutralizing background of static positive ions, the supra-thermal hot and cold electrons are described by the Vlasov equations to account for the Kappa (power-law in velocity space) and Maxwell equilibrium distributions. Fourier analysis further leads to the derivation of electrostatic potential showing the impact of supra-thermal hot electrons. The test charge moves slowly in comparison with the hot and cold electron thermal speeds and is therefore shielded by the electrons. This gives rise to a short-range Debye-Hückel potential decaying exponentially with distance and to a far field potential decaying as inverse third power of the distance from the test charge. The results are relevant for both laboratory and space plasmas, where supra-thermal hot electrons with power-law distributions have been observed.

Description: Although lower hybrid (LH) waves have been shown to be effective in driving plasma current in present-day tokamaks, they are predicted to strongly interact with the energetic α particles born from fusion reactions in eventual tokamak reactors. However, in the presence of the expected steep α particle birth gradient, this interaction can produce wave amplification rather than wave damping. Here, we identify the flexibilities and constraints in achieving this amplification effect through a consideration of symmetries in the channeling interaction, in the wave propagation, and in the tokamak field configuration. Interestingly, for standard LH current drive that supports the poloidal magnetic field, we find that wave amplification through α channeling is fundamentally coupled to the poorly understood | k ∥ | upshift. In so doing, we show that wave launch from the tokamak high-field side is favorable both for α -channeling and for achieving the | k ∥ | upshift.

Description: The electromagnetic field in the electron “bubble” regime for ultra-intense laser wakefield acceleration was solved using the d'Alembert equations. Ignoring the residual electrons, we assume an ellipsoidal bubble forms under ideal conditions, with bubble velocity equal to the speed of light in vacuum. The general solution for bubble shape and electromagnetic field were obtained. The results were confirmed in 2.5D PIC (particle-in-cell) simulations. Moreover, slopes for the longitudinal electric field of larger than 0.5 were found in these simulations. With spherical bubbles, this slope is always smaller than or equal to 0.5. This behavior validates the ellipsoid assumption.

Description: A fusion reactor requires plasma pre-heating before the rate of deuterium-tritium fusion reactions becomes significant. In ITER, radio frequency (RF) heating of 3 He ions, additionally puffed into the plasma, is one of the main options considered for increasing bulk ion temperature during the ramp-up phase of the pulse. In this paper, we propose an alternative scenario for bulk ion heating with RF waves, which requires no extra 3 He puff and profits from the presence of intrinsic Beryllium impurities in the plasma. The discussed method to heat Be impurities in D-T plasmas is shown to provide an even larger fraction of fuel ion heating.

Description: The polarity of ion-acoustic solitons that arise in a plasma with two (same mass, different temperature) ion species and two (different temperature) electron species is investigated. Two different fluid models are compared. The first model treats all species as adiabatic fluids, while the second model treats the ion species as adiabatic, and the electron species as isothermal. Nonlinear structures are analysed via the reductive perturbation analysis and pseudo-potential analysis. Each model supports both slow and fast ion-acoustic solitons, associated with the two (slow and fast) ion-acoustic speeds. The models support both positive and negative polarity solitons associated with the slow ion-acoustic speed. Moreover, results are in good agreement, and both models support positive and negative polarity double layers. For the fast ion-acoustic speed, the first model supports only positive polarity solitons, while the second model supports solitons of both polarity, coexistence of positive and negative polarity solitons, double layers and supersolitons. A novel feature of our analysis is the evaluation of nonlinear structures at critical number densities where polarity changes occur. This analysis shows that solitons that occur at the acoustic speed are neither a necessary nor a sufficient condition for the phenomenon of coexistence. The relationship between the existence regions of supersolitons and soliton polarity is also discussed.

Description: We study the phenomenon of diffusive radiative heat waves (Marshak waves) under general boundary conditions. In particular, we derive full analytic solutions for the subsonic case that include both the ablation and the shock wave regions. Previous works in this regime, based on the work of R. Pakula and R. Sigel [Phys. Fluids. 28 , 232 (1985)], present self-similar solutions for the ablation region alone, since, in general, the shock region and the ablation region are not self-similar together. Analytic results for both regions were obtained only for the specific case in which the ratio between the ablation front velocity and the shock velocity is constant. In this work, we derive a full analytic solution for the whole problem in general boundary conditions. Our solution is composed of two different self-similar solutions, one for each region, that are patched at the heat front. The ablative region of the heat wave is solved in a manner similar to previous works. Then, the pressure at the front, which is derived from the ablative region solution, is taken as a boundary condition to the shock region, while the other boundary is described by Hugoniot relations. The solution is compared to full numerical simulations in several representative cases. The numerical and analytic results are found to agree within 1% in the ablation region, and within 2 % – 5 % in the shock region. This model allows better prediction of the physical behavior of radiation induced shock waves, and can be applied for high energy density physics experiments.

Description: Plasma-based decelerating schemes are investigated as compact alternatives for the disposal of high-energy beams (beam dumps). Analytical solutions for the energy loss of electron beams propagating in passive and active (laser-driven) schemes are derived. These solutions, along with numerical modeling, are used to investigate the evolution of the electron distribution, including energy chirp and total beam energy. In the active beam dump scheme, a laser-driver allows a more homogeneous beam energy extraction and drastically reduces the energy chirp observed in the passive scheme. These concepts could benefit applications requiring overall compactness, such as transportable light sources, or facilities operating at high beam power.

Description: In this work, we compare gyrokinetic (GK) with fully kinetic Particle-in-Cell (PIC) simulations of magnetic reconnection in the limit of strong guide field. In particular, we analyze the limits of applicability of the GK plasma model compared to a fully kinetic description of force free current sheets for finite guide fields ( b g ). Here, we report the first part of an extended comparison, focusing on the macroscopic effects of the electron flows. For a low beta plasma ( β i  = 0.01), it is shown that both plasma models develop magnetic reconnection with similar features in the secondary magnetic islands if a sufficiently high guide field ( b g  ≳ 30) is imposed in the kinetic PIC simulations. Outside of these regions, in the separatrices close to the X points, the convergence between both plasma descriptions is less restrictive ( b g  ≳ 5). Kinetic PIC simulations using guide fields b g  ≲ 30 reveal secondary magnetic islands with a core magnetic field and less energetic flows inside of them in comparison to the GK or kinetic PIC runs with stronger guide fields. We find that these processes are mostly due to an initial shear flow absent in the GK initialization and negligible in the kinetic PIC high guide field regime, in addition to fast outflows on the order of the ion thermal speed that violate the GK ordering. Since secondary magnetic islands appear after the reconnection peak time, a kinetic PIC/GK comparison is more accurate in the linear phase of magnetic reconnection. For a high beta plasma ( β i  = 1.0) where reconnection rates and fluctuations levels are reduced, similar processes happen in the secondary magnetic islands in the fully kinetic description, but requiring much lower guide fields ( b g  ≲ 3).

Description: In the present paper, we investigate the trapping of relativistic electrons by intense whistler-mode waves or electromagnetic ion cyclotron waves in the Earth's radiation belts. We consider the non-resonant impact of additional, lower amplitude magnetic field fluctuations on the stability of electron trapping. We show that such additional non-resonant fluctuations can break the adiabatic invariant corresponding to trapped electron oscillations in the effective wave potential. This destruction results in a diffusive escape of electrons from the trapped regime of motion and thus can lead to a significant reduction of the efficiency of electron acceleration. We demonstrate that when energetic electrons are trapped by intense parallel or very oblique whistler-mode waves, non-resonant magnetic field fluctuations in the whistler-mode frequency range with moderate amplitudes around 3 − 15 pT (much less intense than the primary waves) can totally disrupt the trapped motion. However, the trapping of relativistic electrons by electromagnetic ion cyclotron waves is noticeably more stable. We also discuss how the proposed approach can be used to estimate the effects of wave amplitude modulations on the motion of trapped particles.

Description: The double asymmetric probe model presented here solves the rectified rf potential and rf currents in an asymmetric rf discharge as a function of the electrode surface ratio S 1 / S 2 , the rf potential compared to the floating potential, and the sheath capacitances on both sides of the discharge. It is demonstrated that this asymmetric unmagnetized model can be applied to a magnetized double probe one in which the asymmetry arises from the anisotropy between parallel and perpendicular currents. Asymptotic solutions for highly asymmetric discharges yield a dc saturation current on the rf electrode equal to − I s a t / 2 for low sheath capacitance and − I s a t for high sheath capacitance. The transition capacitance between “low” and “high” is defined as C 0 . A solution of the rf averaged current and rectified potential as a function of the surface ratio and the rf potential are also proposed for each regime. These analytical solutions are confirmed by the full numerical model taking into account the generator resistance and the plasma conductivity.

Description: In this paper, our attention is first concentrated on obliquely propagating properties of low-frequency ( ω  ≪ ω cd ) “fast” and “slow” dust acoustic waves, in the linear regime, in dusty electronegative plasmas with Maxwellian electrons, kappa distributed positive ions, negative ions (following the combination of kappa-Schamel distribution), and negatively charged dust particles. So, an explicit expression for dispersion relation is derived by linearizing a set of dust-fluid equations. The results show that wave frequency ω in long and short-wavelengths limit is conspicuously affected by physical parameters, namely, positive to negative temperature ion ratio ( β p ), trapping parameter of negative ions ( μ ), magnitude of the magnetic field B 0 (via ω cd ), superthermal index ( κ n , κ p ), and positive ion to dust density ratio ( δ p ). The signature of the penultimate parameter (i.e., κ n ) on wave frequency reveals that the frequency gap between the modes reduces (escalates) for k 〈 k c r ( k 〉 k c r ), where k cr is critical wave number. Alternatively, for weakly nonlinear analysis, reductive perturbation theory has been used to construct 1D and 3D Schamel Korteweg-de Vries (S-KdV) equations, whose nonlinearity coefficient prescribes only compressive soliton for all parameter values of interest. The survey manifests that deviation of ions from Maxwellian behavior leads intrinsic properties of solitary waves to be evolved in opposite trend. Additionally, at lower proportion of trapped negative ions, solitary wave amplitude mitigates, whilst the trapping parameter has no effect on both spatial width and the linear wave. The results are discussed in the context of the Earth's mesosphere of dusty electronegative plasma.

Description: Jeans instability is examined in magnetized quantum dusty plasmas using the quantum hydrodynamic model. The quantum effects are considered via exchange-correlation potential, recoil effect, and Fermi degenerate pressure, in addition to thermal effects of plasma species. It is found that the electron exchange and correlation potential have significant effects over the threshold value of wave vector and Jeans instability. The presence of electron exchange and correlation effect shortens the time of dust sound that comparatively stabilizes the self gravitational collapse. The results at quantum scale are helpful in understanding the collapse of the self-gravitating dusty plasma systems.

Description: In this paper, experiments are described in which cylindrical vacuum insulator samples and samples inclined at 45° relative to the cathode were stressed by microsecond timescale high-voltage pulses and illuminated by focused UV laser beam pulses. In these experiments, we were able to distinguish between flashover initiated by the laser producing only photo-electrons and when plasma is formed. It was shown that flashover is predominantly initiated near the cathode triple junction. Even dense plasma formed near the anode triple junction does not necessarily lead to vacuum surface flashover. The experimental results directly confirm our conjecture that insulator surface breakdown can be avoided by preventing its initiation [J. G. Leopold et al. , Phys. Rev. ST Accel. Beams 10 , 060401 (2007)] and complement our previous experimental results [J. Z. Gleizer et al. , IEEE Trans. Dielectr. Electr. Insul. 21 , 2394 (2014) and J. Z. Gleizer et al. , J. Appl. Phys. 117 , 073301 (2015)].

Description: This paper studies the effect of rotation on microinstabilities under experimentally relevant conditions in the spherical tokamak National Spherical Torus Experiment (NSTX). The focus is specifically on the centrifugal force effects on the impurity and momentum transport in the core ( r / a = 0.7 ) of an H-mode plasma. Due to relatively high beta, the linear simulations predict the presence of both microtearing mode (MTM) and hybrid ion temperature gradient-kinetic ballooning mode (ITG-KBM) electromagnetic instabilities. Rotation effects on both MTM and ITG-KBM growth rates and mode frequencies are found to be small for the experimental values. However, they do influence the quasi-linear particle and momentum fluxes predicted by ITG-KBM (MTM contributes only to electron heat flux). The gradient of the intrinsic carbon impurity in the source-free core region is predicted to be locally hollow, strengthened by centrifugal effects. This result is consistent with experimental measurements and contradicts neoclassical theory that typically provides a reasonable explanation of the impurity profiles in NSTX. The diffusive and Coriolis pinch contributions to momentum transport are found to be relatively weak. Surprisingly, the strongest contribution derives from a centrifugal effect proportional to the product of rotation and rotation shear, which predicts an inward momentum flux roughly three times bigger than the Coriolis pinch, suggesting it should be considered when interpreting previous experimental pinch measurements.

Description: The plasma density non-uniformity gives rise to the coupling of transverse magnetic electron drift vortex (MEDV) mode with the longitudinal perturbations in dissipative and non-dissipative electron plasmas. This coupling produces partially transverse and partially longitudinal low frequency instabilities in classical un-magnetized laser plasmas. The MEDV mode couples with the ion acoustic wave, when the ion dynamics is also included. Both the modes have frequencies of the same order of magnitude and couple to give rise to electromagnetic instabilities in un-magnetized plasmas.

Description: Effects of ion dynamics along the background magnetic field have been added to an advanced fluid model which has been developed, tested, and successfully used in transport code applications during the last decades. Introducing electrostatic ( ϕ ) and electromagnetic ( ψ ) potentials, a system of two coupled second order differential equations in these potentials is derived. The mode solution is interpreted as a coupling between an Ion Temperature Gradient (ITG) mode and an ion motion driven acoustic wave. The mode may be stabilized by electromagnetic effects and by minimizing the ITG parameter η i ( = L n L T i ). Interestingly, the addition of kinetic Landau resonance effects may enhance the η i stabilization.

Description: The interactions among two laser ablated Al plasmas and their shock wave fronts (SWFs) induced by double laser pulses in air were studied experimentally. The evolution processes, including the expansion and interaction of the two plasmas and their shocks, were investigated by laser shadowgraphs, schlieren images, and interferograms. Remarkably, the distribution of the compressed air and the laser plasmas during the colliding process was clearly obtained using the Mach-Zehnder interferometer. From the refractive index profiles, typical plasmas density and gas density behind the shock front were estimated as ∼5.2 × 10 18  cm −3 and ∼2.4 × 10 20  cm −3 . A stagnation layer formed by the collision of gas behind the shock front is observed. The SWFs propagated, collided, and reflected with a higher velocity than plasmas. The results indicated that the slower plasma collided at middle, leading to the formation of the soft stagnation.

Description: Using a kinetic theory approach, dust ion acoustic (DIA) waves are investigated in an unmagnetized collisionless plasma with kappa-distributed electrons and ions, and Maxwellian dust grains of constant charge. Both analytical and numerical results, the latter following from the full solution of the associated dispersion relation, are presented, and a comparison is made. The effects of the ion and electron spectral indices, as well as the species' density ( n e / n i ) and temperature ( T e / T i ) ratios, on the dispersion and damping of the waves are considered. In the long wavelength regime, increases in both the electron spectral index ( κ e ) and the dust density fraction (reduced f = n e / n i ) lead to an increase in phase velocity. The range in wavelength over which modes are weakly damped increases with an increase in T e / T i . However, the ion spectral index, κ i , does not have a significant effect on the dispersion or damping of DIA waves.

Description: Self-oscillation obtained using a DC-only power supply under specific anode voltage conditions is investigated in a cylindrical system with thermal electrons using tungsten filaments. Analysis of the obtained oscillation profiles reveals that the experimental data are consistent with a model derived from the particle balance model. The self-oscillation period characteristics with respect to the pressure and gas species are also analyzed. As the physics and particle motion of self-oscillation near the plasma transition region are analyzed from different perspectives, this paper may advance the study of this phenomenon.

Description: This paper presents a reduced kinetic model, which describes simultaneously trapped-ion (TIM) and trapped-electron (TEM) driven modes. Interestingly, the model enables the study of a full f problem for ion and electron trapped particles at very low numerical cost. The linear growth rate obtained with the full f nonlinear code Trapped Element REduction in Semi Lagrangian Approach is successfully compared with analytical predictions. Moreover, nonlinear results show some basic properties of collisionless TEM and TIM turbulence in tokamaks. A competition between streamer-like structures and zonal flows is observed for TEM and TIM turbulence. Zonal flows are shown to play an important role in suppressing the nonlinear transport and strongly depend on the temperature ratio T e / T i .

Description: Axial and radial variations of electric field have been measured in dielectric shielded 0.025 m diameter parallel plate electrode with 0.0065 m gap for 1.6 mA, 2260 V helium dc discharge at 1.75 Torr. The axial and radial electric field profiles have been measured from the Stark splitting of 2 1 S→11 1 P transition through collision induced fluorescence from 4 3 D→2 3 P. The electric field values showed a strong radial variation peaking to 500 kV/m near the cathode radial boundary, and decreasing to about 100 kV/m near the anode edge, suggesting the formation of an obstructed discharge for this low nd condition, where n is the gas density and d is the gap distance. The off-axis Stark spectra showed that the electric field vector deviates from normal to the cathode surface which permits longer path electron trajectories in the inter-electrode gap. Also, the on-axis electric field gradient was very small and off-axis electric field gradient was large indicating a radially non-uniform current density. In order to obtain information about the space charge distribution in this obstructed discharge, it was modeled using the 2-d axisymmetric Poisson solver with the COMSOL finite element modeling program. The best fit to the measured electric field distribution was obtained with a space charge variation of ρ(r) = ρ 0 (r/r 0 ) 3 , where ρ(r) is the local space charge density, ρ 0  = 6 × 10 −3 Coulomb/m 3 , r is the local radial value, and r 0 is the radius of the electrode.

Description: Collisionless trapped ion modes (CTIMs) turbulence exhibits a rich variety of zonal flow physics. The coupling of CTIMs with shear flow driven by the Kelvin-Helmholtz (KH) instability has been investigated. The work explores the parametric excitation of zonal flow modified by wave-particle interactions leading to a new type of resonant low-frequency zonal flow. The KH-CTIM interaction on zonal flow growth and its feedback on turbulence is investigated using semi-Lagrangian gyrokinetic Vlasov simulations based on a Hamiltonian reduction technique, where both fast scales (cyclotron plus bounce motions) are gyro-averaged.

Description: The influence of a keeper electrode with a floating potential on the operation of a micro-hollow cathode is studied using the two-dimensional particle-in-cell Monte Carlo collisions model. The floating potential is determined self-consistently, taking into account the electron and ion charges collected by the keeper and the potential induced by the plasma non-compensated space charge. It is shown that the parameters of the micro-hollow cathode operation vary significantly, according to whether the keeper potential is floating or has a specified constant value.

Description: In this work plasma acceleration using a RF self-bias effect is experimentally studied. The experiments are conducted using a novel plasma accelerator system, called Neptune, consisting of an inductively coupled plasma source and a RF-biased set of grids. The plasma accelerator can operate in a steady state mode, producing a plasma flow with separately controlled plasma flux and velocity without any magnetic configuration. The operating pressure at the source output is as low as 0.2 mTorr and can further be decreased. The ion and electron flows are investigated by measuring the ion and electron energy distribution functions both space resolved and with different orientations with respect to the flow direction. It is found that the flow of electrons from the source is highly anisotropic and directed along the ion flow and this global flow of accelerated plasma is well localized in the plasma transport chamber. The maximum flux is about 7.5·10 15 ions s −1 m −2 (at standard conditions) on the axis and decreasing to almost zero at a radial distances of more than 15 cm from the flow axis. Varying the RF acceleration voltage in the range 20–350 V, the plasma flow velocity can be changed between 10 and 35 km/s. The system is prospective for different technology such as space propulsion and surface modification and also interesting for fundamental studies for space-related plasma simulations and investigation of the dynamo effect using accelerated rotating plasmas.

Description: The dual-mode characteristics of the Buneman instability are investigated in a slab plasma, including the geometric effects. The dual symmetric and anti-symmetric dispersion modes of the Buneman instability are obtained by the plasma dielectric function with the spectral reflection conditions for the slab geometry. The result shows that the magnitudes of the growth rate for the symmetric mode are always greater than those for the anti-symmetric mode. It is also found that the geometric effect suppresses the position of the maximum growth rate for the Buneman instability in bounded slab plasmas since the maximum conditions for the symmetric and anti-symmetric modes of the Buneman instability are given by 0.60 〈 k z v 0 / ω p e 〈 0.65 . The physical characteristics and properties of the dual modes of the Buneman instability are also discussed.

Description: We investigated the lifecycle of laser-generated air sparks or plasmas using multiple plasma diagnostic tools. The sparks were generated by focusing the fundamental radiation from an Nd:YAG laser in air, and studies included early and late time spark dynamics, decoupling of the shock wave from the plasma core, emission from the spark kernel, cold gas excitation by UV radiation, shock waves produced by the air spark, and the spark's final decay and turbulence formation. The shadowgraphic and self-emission images showed similar spark morphology at earlier and late times of its lifecycle; however, significant differences are seen in the midlife images. Spectroscopic studies in the visible region showed intense blackbody-type radiation at early times followed by clearly resolved ionic, atomic, and molecular emission. The detected spectrum at late times clearly contained emission from both CN and N 2 + . Additional spectral features have been identified at late times due to emission from O and N atoms, indicating some degree of molecular dissociation and excitation. Detailed spatially and temporally resolved emission analysis provides insight about various physical mechanisms leading to molecular and atomic emission by air sparks, including spark plasma excitation, heating of cold air by UV radiation emitted by the spark, and shock-heating.

Description: In a low-pressure radio-frequency (13.56 MHz), inductively coupled argon plasma generated by a normal cylindrical rf coil, electric field, current density, and absorbed power density is calculated from magnetic field measured with a phase-resolved magnetic probe. The anomalous skin effect (ASE) for the cylindrical rf coil is compared to those previously reported for the planar and re-entrant cylindrical rf coils. Physical reasons for our observed characteristics of ASE are presented. With the increasing discharge power, the size and the number of negative and positive power absorption regions evolve into several distinct patterns. For the low discharge power (at 156.9 W), there is one area of positive and one area of negative power absorption in the radial direction. For the medium discharge power (279 W–683.5 W), there are two areas of negative and two areas of positive power absorption. For the even higher discharge power (above 803.5 W), the number of areas is the same as that of the medium discharge power, but the size of the inner positive and negative power absorption areas is approximately doubled and halved, respectively, while the outer positive and negative power absorption areas slightly shrinks. The evolution of positive and negative power absorption regions is explained as a result of electron thermal diffusion and the energy conversion between rf current and electric field. The spatial decays of electric field and current density are also elucidated by linking them with the positive and negative power absorption pattern.

Description: Magnetic reconnection in the presence of background pressure gradients is studied, with special attention to parallel (compressional) magnetic fluctuations. A process is reported that reconnects fields through coupling of drift-wave-type instabilities with current sheets. Its time scale is set not by the reconnecting field but by inhomogeneities of the background density or temperature. The observed features can be attributed to a pressure-gradient-driven linear instability which interacts with the reconnecting system but is fundamentally different from microtearing. In particular, this mode relies on parallel magnetic fluctuations and the associated drift. For turbulent reconnection, similar or even stronger enhancements are reported. In the solar corona, this yields a critical pressure gradient scale length of about 200 km below which this new process becomes dominant over the tearing instability.

Description: In this paper, we study relativistic electron scattering by fast magnetosonic waves. We compare results of test particle simulations and the quasi-linear theory for different spectra of waves to investigate how a fine structure of the wave emission can influence electron resonant scattering. We show that for a realistically wide distribution of wave normal angles θ (i.e., when the dispersion δ θ ≥ 0.5 ° ), relativistic electron scattering is similar for a wide wave spectrum and for a spectrum consisting in well-separated ion cyclotron harmonics. Comparisons of test particle simulations with quasi-linear theory show that for δ θ 〉 0.5 ° , the quasi-linear approximation describes resonant scattering correctly for a large enough plasma frequency. For a very narrow θ distribution (when δ θ ∼ 0.05 ° ), however, the effect of a fine structure in the wave spectrum becomes important. In this case, quasi-linear theory clearly fails in describing accurately electron scattering by fast magnetosonic waves. We also study the effect of high wave amplitudes on relativistic electron scattering. For typical conditions in the earth's radiation belts, the quasi-linear approximation cannot accurately describe electron scattering for waves with averaged amplitudes 〉300 pT. We discuss various applications of the obtained results for modeling electron dynamics in the radiation belts and in the Earth's magnetotail.

Description: A model is presented for describing the cylindrical implosion of a shock wave driven by an accelerated piston. It is based in the identification of the acceleration of the shocked mass with the acceleration of the piston. The model yields the separate paths of the piston and the shock. In addition, by considering that the shocked region evolves isentropically, the approximate profiles of all the magnitudes in the shocked region are obtained. The application to the dynamic Z-pinch is presented and the results are compared with the well known snowplow and slug models which are also derived as limiting cases of the present model. The snowplow model is seen to yield a trajectory in between those of the shock and the piston. Instead, the neglect of the inertial effects in the slug model is seen to produce a too fast implosion, and the pressure uniformity is shown to lead to an unphysical instantaneous piston stopping when the shock arrives to the axis.

Description: In this work, we discuss experimental observations on the dynamics of a fast, low energy capillary discharge when operated in argon and its properties as an intense source of extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) radiation. The discharge pre-ionization and self-triggering were accomplished by the use of the hollow cathode effect. This allowed a compact size and low inductance discharge with multi-kA current level and a quarter-period of ∼10 ns at sub-Joule energy level. We used the novel moiré and schlieren diagnostics with a 12 ps laser to obtain the time evolution of the line electron density and to study the plasma dynamics. EUV spectroscopy and filtered diodes were also implemented to estimate the plasma temperature and density throughout the evolution of the discharge. EUV source size was measured by using a filtered slit-wire camera. We observed that EUV emission starts from a compressed plasma on axis during the second quarter-period of the current and continues until the fifth quarter-period. Ionization levels from Ar VII to X were observed. By comparing the EUV emission spectra with synthetic spectra, we found that at the onset of emission (∼7 ns), the plasma is well fitted by a single Maxwellian electron distribution function with T e  ∼ 12 eV and n e  ∼ 10 17  cm −3 . Close to peak emission (∼13 ns), plasma temperature and density increase to ∼20 eV and n e  ∼ 10 18  cm −3 , respectively. However, in order to successfully match the experimental data, a two component electron distribution function was necessary. Later in time, a smaller fraction in the high energy component and higher temperature suggests homogenization of the plasma. The moiré and schlieren diagnostics showed multiple radial compression-waves merging on axis throughout the discharge; they are an important heating mechanism that leads to a period of severe turbulence at peak EUV emission. It was also observed that emission ceases when the axial maximum of the electron density collapses.

Description: By adjusting the focus geometry of a spatially structured laser pulse, single, double, and treble quasi-monoenergetic electron beams were generated, respectively, in laser-wakefield acceleration. Single electron beam was produced as focusing the laser pulse to a single spot. While focusing the laser pulse to two spots that are approximately equal in energy and size and intense enough to form their own filaments, two electron beams were produced. Moreover, with a proper distance between those two focal spots, three electron beams emerged with a certain probability owing to the superposition of the diffractions of those two spots. The energy spectra of the multiple electron beams are quasi-monoenergetic, which are different from that of the large energy spread beams produced due to the longitudinal multiple-injection in the single bubble.

Description: Natural lightning flashes are stochastic and uncontrollable, and thus, it is difficult to observe the formation process of a downward negative stepped leader (NSL) directly and in detail. This situation has led to some dispute over the actual NSL formation mechanism, and thus has hindered improvements in the lightning shielding analysis model. In this paper, on the basis of controllable long air gap discharge experiments, the formation conditions required for NSLs in negative flashes have been studied. First, a series of simulation experiments on varying scales were designed and carried out. The NSL formation processes were observed, and several of the characteristic process parameters, including the scale, the propagation velocity, and the dark period, were obtained. By comparing the acquired formation processes and the characteristic parameters with those in natural lightning flashes, the similarity between the NSLs in the simulation experiments and those in natural flashes was proved. Then, based on the local thermodynamic equation and the space charge estimation method, the required NSL formation conditions were deduced, and the space background electric field ( E b ) was proposed as the primary parameter for NSL formation. Finally, the critical value of E b required for the formation of NSLs in natural flashes was determined to be approximately 75 kV/m by extrapolation of the results of the simulation experiments.

Description: The Brillouin flow is the prevalent flow in crossed-field devices. We systematically study its stability in the conventional, planar, and inverted magnetron geometry. To investigate the intrinsic negative mass effect in Brillouin flow, we consider electrostatic modes in a nonrelativistic, smooth bore magnetron. We found that the Brillouin flow in the inverted magnetron is more unstable than that in a planar magnetron, which in turn is more unstable than that in the conventional magnetron. Thus, oscillations in the inverted magnetron may startup faster than the conventional magnetron. This result is consistent with simulations, and with the negative mass property in the inverted magnetron configuration. Inclusion of relativistic effects and electromagnetic effects does not qualitatively change these conclusions.

Description: The stability properties of the steady state solutions [Pramanik et al ., Phys. Plasmas 22 , 042110 (2015)] of a Bursian diode in presence of constant transverse magnetic field have been studied. Employing first order perturbation theory, a relevant dispersion relation has been derived for the time dependent states. Utilizing the η − ε diagram along with the dispersion relation, it is revealed that the steady state solutions which lie on the branch I (C normal branch) of “ ε 0 − δ ” curve are stable and the solutions which belong to the branch II (C overlap branch) are unstable with respect to small aperiodic perturbations. The width of the unstable branch gradually decreases as the magnitude of external magnetic field is increased.

Description: Using “first principles” molecular dynamics simulation, we report for the first time the formation of Rayleigh-Bénard convection cells (RBCC) in two-dimensional strongly coupled Yukawa liquids, characterized by coupling strength Γ (ratio of average potential energy to kinetic energy per particle) and screening parameter κ (ratio of average inter-particle distance to Debye length). For typical values of (Γ, κ ), existence of a critical external temperature difference is demonstrated, beyond which RBCC are seen to set in. Beyond this critical external temperature difference, the strength of the maximum convective flow velocity is shown to exhibit a new, hitherto unsuspected linear relationship with external temperature difference and with a slope independent of (Γ, κ ). The time taken for the transients to settle down ( τ s ) to a steady state RBCC is found to be maximum close to the above said critical external temperature difference and is seen to reduce with increasing external temperature difference. For the range of values of (Γ, κ ) considered here, τ s ≈ 10 000–20 000 ω p d − 1 , where ω pd is dust plasma frequency. As Γ is increased to very high values, due to strong coupling effects, cells are seen to be in a transient state without attaining a steady state for as long as 100 000 ω p d − 1 , even for a very high external temperature difference. Role of system size, aspect ratio, and dust-neutral collisions has also been addressed.

Description: A simple zero dimensional model for a tokamak disruption is developed to evaluate the avalanche multiplication of a runaway primary seed during the current quench phase of a fast disruptive event. Analytical expressions for the plateau runaway current, the energy of the runaway beam, and the runaway energy distribution function are obtained allowing the identification of the parameters dominating the formation of the runaway current during disruptions. The effect of the electromagnetic coupling to the vessel and the penetration of the external magnetic energy during the disruption current quench as well as of the collisional dissipation of the runaway current at high densities are investigated. Current profile shape effects during the formation of the runaway beam are also addressed by means of an upgraded one-dimensional model.

Description: The acceleration of electrons generated during ionization of low density gases has been studied using seventh order correction fields of a laser pulse for linearly and circularly polarized laser pulse. The spectrum of energy and angle of emittance of the electrons generated and accelerated during ionization of nitrogen ions N 5 + , oxygen ions O 6 + , neon ions Ne 8 + , krypton ions Kr 32 + , and argon ions Ar 16 + has been obtained for normalized laser intensity parameter a 0 = 4 ,   6 ,   12 ,   20 , and 75, respectively, for normalized laser spot size r 0 = 60 ,   90 , and 120. Energy and scattering spectrum for nitrogen, oxygen, and neon ions show two peaks and may generate quasimonoenergetic beams for small laser spot sizes. The energy spectrum is wide and peak lies at low energy for krypton than that for argon. The energy peaks are at higher energy for circularly polarized laser pulse than that for linearly polarized laser pulse. The paraxial approximation may fail to yield accurate results at low values of laser spot size and high laser intensity. The energy associated with spectrum peak tends to saturate with laser intensity.

Description: The emission threshold of explosive emission cathodes (EECs) is an important factor for beam quality. It can affect the explosive emission delay time, the plasma expansion process on the cathode surface, and even the current amplitude when the current is not fully space-charge-limited. This paper researches the influence of the emission threshold of an annular EEC on the current waveform in a foilless diode when the current is measured by a Rogowski coil. The particle-in-cell simulation which is performed under some tolerable and necessary simplifications shows that the long explosive emission delay time of high-threshold cathodes may leave an apparent peak of displacement current on the rise edge of the current waveform, and this will occur only when the electron emission starts after this peak. The experimental researches, which are performed under a diode voltage of 1 MV and a repetitive frequency of 20 Hz, demonstrate that the graphite cathode has a lower emission threshold and a longer lifetime than the stainless steel cathode according to the variation of the peak of displacement current on the rise edge of the current waveform.

Description: By choosing appropriate deformed Maxwellian ion and electron distribution functions depending on the two particle constants of motion, i.e., the energy and toroidal angular momentum, we reduce the Vlasov axisymmetric equilibrium problem for quasineutral plasmas to a transcendental Grad-Shafranov-like equation. This equation is then solved numerically under the Dirichlet boundary condition for an analytically prescribed boundary possessing a lower X-point to construct tokamak equilibria with toroidal sheared ion flow and anisotropic pressure. Depending on the deformation of the distribution functions, these steady states can have toroidal current densities either peaked on the magnetic axis or hollow. These two kinds of equilibria may be regarded as a bifurcation in connection with symmetry properties of the distribution functions on the magnetic axis.

Description: The soft mean spherical approximation is employed for the study of the thermodynamics of dusty plasma liquids, the latter treated as Yukawa one-component plasmas. Within this integral theory method, the only input necessary for the calculation of the reduced excess energy stems from the solution of a single non-linear algebraic equation. Consequently, thermodynamic quantities can be routinely computed without the need to determine the pair correlation function or the structure factor. The level of accuracy of the approach is quantified after an extensive comparison with numerical simulation results. The approach is solved over a million times with input spanning the whole parameter space and reliable analytic expressions are obtained for the basic thermodynamic quantities.

Description: Disintegration of a Gaussian profile into ion-acoustic solitons in the presence of trapped electrons [H. Hakimi Pajouh and H. Abbasi, Phys. Plasmas 15 , 082105 (2008)] is revisited. Through a hybrid (Vlasov-Fluid) model, the restrictions associated with the simple modified Korteweg de-Vries (mKdV) model are studied. For instance, the lack of vital information in the phase space associated with the evolution of electron velocity distribution, the perturbative nature of mKdV model which limits it to the weak nonlinear cases, and the special spatio-temporal scaling based on which the mKdV is derived. Remarkable differences between the results of the two models lead us to conclude that the mKdV model can only monitor the general aspects of the dynamics, and the precise picture including the correct spatio-temporal scales and the properties of solitons should be studied within the framework of hybrid model.

Description: A relatively simple model for the generation of the radial electric field, E r , near the outboard boundary in a tokamak is presented. The model posits that E r is established to supply the return current necessary to balance the thermal ion orbit loss current. Comparison with DIII-D data is promising. Features of the model that promote a more negative edge E r are higher ion temperature, lower density, lower impurity ion content, and a shorter pathlength for orbit loss. These scalings are consistent with experimentally established access to the high-confinement mode edge transport barrier.

Description: To determine the link between the onset of the filamentation instability and the low temperature resistivity of the cold-electron plasma, a comparison between the transport of fast electrons through disordered aluminium and copper targets is made using the hybrid code Zephyros. The filamentation instability is suppressed at laser intensities below 5 × 10 19   Wcm - 2 for materials where the resistivity of the material is lower than 1 μ Ω m at 1 eV. Interestingly, copper targets show larger resistive magnetic field growth, and as a result, more collimation of the electron beam, despite having a consistently smaller resistivity at lower temperatures than that of aluminium. The increase in magnetic field strength is responsible for the suppression of the filamentation instability. This is due to the resistive filamentation growth rate for copper and aluminium, under identical conditions, being numerically very close.

Description: An analytic formula has been derived for the relativistic incoherent Thomson backscattering spectrum for a drifting anisotropic plasma when the scattering vector is parallel to the drifting direction. The shape of the scattering spectrum is insensitive to the electron temperature perpendicular to the scattering vector, but its amplitude may be modulated. As a result, while the measured temperature correctly represents the electron distribution parallel to the scattering vector, the electron density may be underestimated when the perpendicular temperature is higher than the parallel temperature. Since the scattering spectrum in shorter wavelengths is greatly enhanced by the existence of drift, the diagnostics might be used to measure local electron current density in fusion plasmas.

Description: An implicit, non-local thermal conduction algorithm based on the algorithm developed by Schurtz, Nicolai, and Busquet (SNB) [Schurtz et al. , Phys. Plasmas 7 , 4238 (2000)] for non-local electron transport is presented and has been implemented in the radiation-hydrodynamics code DRACO. To study the model's effect on DRACO's predictive capability, simulations of shot 60 303 from OMEGA are completed using the iSNB model, and the computed shock speed vs. time is compared to experiment. Temperature outputs from the iSNB model are compared with the non-local transport model of Goncharov et al. [Phys. Plasmas 13 , 012702 (2006)]. Effects on adiabat are also examined in a polar drive surrogate simulation. Results show that the iSNB model is not only capable of flux-limitation but also preheat prediction while remaining numerically robust and sacrificing little computational speed. Additionally, the results provide strong incentive to further modify key parameters within the SNB theory, namely, the newly introduced non-local mean free path. This research was supported by the Laboratory for Laser Energetics of the University of Rochester.

Description: This paper presents a statistical theory for the initial onset of multipactor breakdown in coaxial transmission lines, taking both the nonuniform electric field and random electron emission velocity into account. A general numerical method is first developed to construct the joint probability density function based on the approximate equation of the electron trajectory. The nonstationary dynamics of the multipactor process on both surfaces of coaxial lines are modelled based on the probability of various impacts and their corresponding secondary emission. The resonant assumption of the classical theory on the independent double-sided and single-sided impacts is replaced by the consideration of their interaction. As a result, the time evolutions of the electron population for exponential growth and absorption on both inner and outer conductor, in response to the applied voltage above and below the multipactor breakdown level, are obtained to investigate the exact mechanism of multipactor discharge in coaxial lines. Furthermore, the multipactor threshold predictions of the presented model are compared with experimental results using measured secondary emission yield of the tested samples which shows reasonable agreement. Finally, the detailed impact scenario reveals that single-surface multipactor is more likely to occur with a higher outer to inner conductor radius ratio.

Description: This paper investigates the scaling of asymmetric wall force and toroidal rotation during tokamak disruptions. It is shown by simulations and analysis how these effects depend on the displacement in an asymmetric vertical displacement event (AVDE) and on 3D magnetic field perturbation amplitude. The simulations include a sequence of both upward and downward displacements. It is verified that the asymmetric force is proportional to the vertical current moment, which in turn is proportional to the product of vertical displacement and the magnetic perturbation amplitude. It is verified how the scaling of toroidal rotation in AVDE disruptions depends on magnetic perturbation amplitude, vertical displacement, and β N .

Description: In the present experimental work, laser induced magnesium plasma has been characterized using plasma parameters. The plasma has been generated by the fundamental (1064 nm) and second harmonics (532 nm) of Nd:YAG laser. The plasma parameters such as electron temperature and electron number density have been extracted using Boltzmann plot method and Stark broadened line profile, respectively. The laser irradiance dependence and spatial behavior of electron temperature and number density in laser induced magnesium plasma have been studied. The electron temperature as a function of laser irradiance (0.5 to 6.5 GW/cm 2 ) ranges from (9.16–10.37) × 10 3  K and (8.5–10.1)× 10 3  K, and electron number density from (0.99–1.08) × 10 16  cm −3 and (1.04–1.22) × 10 16 cm −3 for 1064 and 532 nm, respectively. These parameters exhibit fast increase at low laser irradiance and slow increase at high irradiance. The spatial distribution of electron temperature and electron number density shows same decreasing trend up to 2.25 mm from the target surface. The electron temperature and number density decrease from (9.5–8.6) × 10 3  K, (1.27–1.15) × 10 16 cm −3 and (10.56–8.85)× 10 3  K, (1.08–0.99) × 10 16  cm −3 for 532 nm and 1064 nm laser ablation wavelengths, respectively.

Description: Hydrodynamic simulations of high-energy-density plasmas require a detailed description of energy fluxes. For low and intermediate atomic number materials, the leading mechanism is the electron transport, which may be a nonlocal phenomenon requiring a kinetic modeling. In this paper, we present and test the results of a nonlocal model based on the first angular moments of a simplified Fokker-Planck equation. This multidimensional model is closed thanks to an entropic relation (the Boltzman H-theorem). It provides a better description of the electron distribution function, thus enabling studies of small scale kinetic effects within the hydrodynamic framework. Examples of instabilities of electron plasma and ion-acoustic waves, driven by the heat flux, are presented and compared with the classical formula.

Description: A tunable hard x-ray source from intense laser interacting with overdense solid targets is proposed. It is shown that the incident angle of the laser plays an important role in influencing the radiation quality, including the spectrum of the radiation, the energy conversion efficiency from laser to radiation, and the angular distribution of the radiation. The two dimensional relativistic particle-in-cell simulations shows that, to get the highest energy conversion efficiency, the optimal incident angle for the present simulation parameters is 30 ° , and the energy conversion efficiency from laser to radiation in the optimal incident angle is about 5%, which is far more efficient than other incidence condition using the same laser pulse. The intensity of the laser used in the simulation is 1.34 × 10 22   W / cm 2 . Detailed analysis shows that the vacuum heating radiation mechanism is the dominant mechanism responsible for hard x-ray emission, and the radiation frequency spectrum is tunable when the incident angle changes.

Description: Thermodynamics of weakly screened (near the one-component-plasma limit) Yukawa fluids in two and three dimensions is analyzed in detail. It is shown that the thermal component of the excess internal energy of these fluids, when expressed in terms of the properly normalized coupling strength, exhibits the scaling pertinent to the corresponding one-component-plasma limit (the scalings differ considerably between the two- and three-dimensional situations). This provides us with a simple and accurate practical tool to estimate thermodynamic properties of weakly screened Yukawa fluids. Particular attention is paid to the two-dimensional fluids, for which several important thermodynamic quantities are calculated to illustrate the application of the approach.

Description: Some neutral-beam ions are deflected onto loss orbits by Alfvén eigenmodes on their first bounce orbit. The resonance condition for these ions differs from the usual resonance condition for a confined fast ion. Estimates indicate that particles on single-pass loss orbits transfer enough energy to the wave to alter mode stability.

Description: A charge sheet model is proposed for the study of the space-charge limited density of consecutive electron pulses injected to in a diode with uniform temporal pulse separation. Based on the model, an analytical formula is derived for expressing the dependency of the charge density limit on the gap spacing, gap voltage, and pulse separation. The theoretical results are verified by numerical solutions up to electron energy of a few MeV, including relativistic effects. The model can be applied to the design of multiple-pulse electron beams for time resolved electron microscopy and free electron lasers.

Description: The irradiation uniformity of a cone-in-shell target directly driven by laser beams has been considered. First, a model is established to include the influence of the cone on laser beam propagation. Then, the irradiation uniformity on the target surface outside the cone during the initial imprinting phase is analyzed, and highly uniform irradiation on the target surface outside the cone is achieved by optimizing the intensity distribution within laser beams, as well as the polar direct drive displacement. As an illustrative example, direct drive irradiation uniformity of a typical cone-in-shell target is improved for Shenguang III laser facility, the illumination non-uniformity is reduced from 5.8% to 1.1%. Irradiation on the cone surface outside the target is also analyzed, and it is found that for the laser-target configuration considered in this work, a gold cone thicker than 50 μ m is needed to avoid shock breakout. Moreover, sensitivity to beam uncertainties (power imbalance and pointing error) is analyzed, indicating that this scheme can tolerate a certain amount of beam errors.

Description: A dielectric loaded grating (DLG) for terahertz Smith-Purcell (SP) device is proposed to enhance the radiation intensity. By using the theoretical analysis and particle-in-cell simulations, the dispersion characteristics and SP superradiant radiation are investigated. Compared with the general metal grating, the usage of DLG can improve the magnitude of electric field and, consequently, strengthen the interaction of the evanescent wave with electron beam, which can improve the growth rate, enhance the SP superradiant radiation, and lower the start current for the operation of SP free-electron laser.

Description: Atomic and molecular density data in the outer midplane of NSTX [Ono et al ., Nucl. Fusion 40 , 557 (2000)] are inferred from tangential camera data via a forward modeling procedure using the DEGAS 2 Monte Carlo neutral transport code. The observed Balmer- β light emission data from 17 shots during the 2010 NSTX campaign display no obvious trends with discharge parameters such as the divertor Balmer- α emission level or edge deuterium ion density. Simulations of 12 time slices in 7 of these discharges produce molecular densities near the vacuum vessel wall of 2–8 × 10 17  m −3 and atomic densities ranging from 1 to 7 × 10 16  m −3 ; neither has a clear correlation with other parameters. Validation of the technique, begun in an earlier publication, is continued with an assessment of the sensitivity of the simulated camera image and neutral densities to uncertainties in the data input to the model. The simulated camera image is sensitive to the plasma profiles and virtually nothing else. The neutral densities at the vessel wall depend most strongly on the spatial distribution of the source; simulations with a localized neutral source yield densities within a factor of two of the baseline, uniform source, case. The uncertainties in the neutral densities associated with other model inputs and assumptions are ≤50%.

Description: Effects of collisions on conservation laws for toroidal plasmas are investigated based on the gyrokinetic field theory. Associating the collisional system with a corresponding collisionless system at a given time such that the two systems have the same distribution functions and electromagnetic fields instantaneously, it is shown how the collisionless conservation laws derived from Noether's theorem are modified by the collision term. Effects of the external source term added into the gyrokinetic equation can be formulated similarly with the collisional effects. Particle, energy, and toroidal momentum balance equations including collisional and turbulent transport fluxes are systematically derived using a novel gyrokinetic collision operator, by which the collisional change rates of energy and canonical toroidal angular momentum per unit volume in the gyrocenter space can be given in the conservative forms. The ensemble-averaged transport equations of particles, energy, and toroidal momentum given in the present work are shown to include classical, neoclassical, and turbulent transport fluxes which agree with those derived from conventional recursive formulations.

Description: This paper presents the equilibrium properties of a magnetized plasma column sustained by direct-current (dc) operated hollow cathode discharge in conjunction with a conducting end-plate, acting as the anode. The survey of radial plasma characteristics, performed in argon plasma, shows hotter plasma in the periphery as compared to the central plasma region; whereas the plasma density peaks at the center. The off-centered peak in radial temperature is attributed due to inhomogeneous power deposition in the discharge volume in conjunction with short-circuiting effect by the conducting end plate. A theoretical model based on particle flux and energy balance is given to explain the observed characteristics of the plasma column.

Description: In published literature, there has been scant data on radial trajectory of the plasma focus and no comparison of computed with measured radial trajectory. This paper provides the first such comparative study. We compute the trajectories of the inward-moving radial shock and magnetic piston of UMDPF1 plasma focus and compare these with measured data taken from a streak photograph. The comparison shows agreement with the measured radial trajectory in terms of average speeds and general shape of trajectory. This paper also presents the measured trajectory of the radially compressing piston in another machine, the UMDPF0 plasma focus, confirming that the computed radial trajectory also shows similar general agreement. Features of divergence between the computed and measured trajectories, towards the end of the radial compression, are discussed. From the measured radial trajectories, an inference is made that the neutron yield mechanism could not be thermonuclear. A second inference is made regarding the speeds of axial post-pinch shocks, which are recently considered as a useful tool for damage testing of fusion-related wall materials.

Description: In this paper, the nonlinear mode conversion of extraordinary waves in nonuniform magnetized plasmas is studied using the variational symplectic particle-in-cell simulation. The accuracy of the nonlinear simulation is guaranteed by the long-term accuracy and conservativeness of the symplectic algorithm. The spectra of the electromagnetic wave, the evolution of the wave reflectivity, the energy deposition profile, and the parameter-dependent properties of radio-frequency waves during the nonlinear mode conversion are investigated. It is illustrated that nonlinear effects significantly modify the physics of the radio-frequency injection in magnetized plasmas. The evolutions of the radio-frequency wave reflectivity and the energy deposition are observed, as well as the self-interaction of the Bernstein waves and mode excitations. Even for waves with small magnitude, nonlinear effects can also become important after continuous wave injections, which are common in the realistic radio-frequency wave heating and current drive experiments.

Description: The microwave breakdown in air is simulated numerically within a simple 1D model taking into account a perturbation of electromagnetic field by plasma. The simulations were performed using two qualitatively different codes. One of these codes is based on computation of Maxwell equations, whereas the other one utilizes an approximation of quasi-monochromatic electromagnetic field. There is a good agreement between simulation results obtained by using both codes. Calculations have been carried out in a wide range of air pressures and field frequencies; also varied were initial spatial distributions of plasma density. The results reveal strong dependence of the breakdown evolution on the relation between the field frequency and the gas pressure as well as on the presence of extended rarefied background plasma. At relatively low gas pressures (or high field frequencies), the breakdown process is accompanied by the stationary ionization wave propagating towards the incident electromagnetic wave. In the case of a high gas pressure (or a relatively low field frequency), the peculiarities of the breakdown are associated with a formation of plasma filament array. The extended background plasma can suppress formation of the plasma filament array completely even at high pressures (or low frequencies).

Description: Magnetized plasma sheaths in an oblique magnetic field were extensively investigated by conventionally assuming Boltzmann relation for electron density. This article presents the study of the magnetized sheath without using the Boltzmann relation but by considering the electron reflection along the magnetic field lines caused by the negative sheath potential. A generalized Bohm criterion is analytically derived, and sheath profiles are numerically obtained, which are compared with the results of the conventional model. The results show that the ion Mach number at the sheath edge normal to the wall has a strong dependence on the wall potential, which differs significantly from the conventional model in which the Mach number is independent of the wall potential. The floating wall potential is lower in the present model than that in the conventional model. Furthermore, the sheath profiles are appreciably narrower in the present model when the wall bias is low, but approach the result of the conventional model when the wall bias is high. The sheath thickness decreases with the increase of ion-to-electron temperature ratio and magnetic field strength but has a complex relationship with the angle of the magnetic field.

Description: Helicons are whistler modes with azimuthal wave numbers. They arise in bounded gaseous and solid state plasmas, but the present work shows that very similar modes also exist in unbounded uniform plasmas. The antenna properties determine the mode structure. A simple antenna is a magnetic loop with dipole moment aligned either along or across the ambient background magnetic field B 0 . For such configurations, the wave magnetic field has been measured in space and time in a large and uniform laboratory plasma. The observed wave topology for a dipole along B 0 is similar to that of an m  = 0 helicon mode. It consists of a sequence of alternating whistler vortices. For a dipole across B 0 , an m  = 1 mode is excited which can be considered as a transverse vortex which rotates around B 0 . In m  = 0 modes, the field lines are confined to each half-wavelength vortex while for m  = 1 modes they pass through the entire wave train. A subset of m  = 1 field lines forms two nested helices which rotate in space and time like corkscrews. Depending on the type of the antenna, both m = + 1 and m  = −1 modes can be excited. Helicons in unbounded plasmas also propagate transverse to B 0 . The transverse and parallel wave numbers are about equal and form oblique phase fronts as in whistler Gendrin modes. By superimposing small amplitude fields of several loop antennas, various antenna combinations have been created. These include rotating field antennas, helical antennas, and directional antennas. The radiation efficiency is quantified by the radiation resistance. Since helicons exist in unbounded laboratory plasmas, they can also arise in space plasmas.

Description: In an ideal magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) plasma, shear Alfvén eigenmodes may experience dissipationless damping due to resonant interaction with the shear Alfvén continuum. This continuum damping can make a significant contribution to the overall growth/decay rate of shear Alfvén eigenmodes, with consequent implications for fast ion transport. One method for calculating continuum damping is to solve the MHD eigenvalue problem over a suitable contour in the complex plane, thereby satisfying the causality condition. Such an approach can be implemented in three-dimensional ideal MHD codes which use the Galerkin method. Analytic functions can be fitted to numerical data for equilibrium quantities in order to determine the value of these quantities along the complex contour. This approach requires less resolution than the established technique of calculating damping as resistivity vanishes and is thus more computationally efficient. The complex contour method has been applied to the three-dimensional finite element ideal MHD Code for Kinetic Alfvén waves. In this paper, we discuss the application of the complex contour technique to calculate the continuum damping of global modes in tokamak as well as torsatron, W7-X and H-1NF stellarator cases. To the authors' knowledge, these stellarator calculations represent the first calculation of continuum damping for eigenmodes in fully three-dimensional equilibria. The continuum damping of global modes in W7-X and H-1NF stellarator configurations investigated is found to depend sensitively on coupling to numerous poloidal and toroidal harmonics.

Description: We use a particle-in-cell simulation to study the propagation of localized structures in a magnetized electron-positron plasma with relativistic finite temperature. We use as initial condition for the simulation an envelope soliton solution of the nonlinear Schrödinger equation, derived from the relativistic two fluid equations in the strongly magnetized limit. This envelope soliton turns out not to be a stable solution for the simulation and splits in two localized structures propagating in opposite directions. However, these two localized structures exhibit a soliton-like behavior, as they keep their profile after they collide with each other due to the periodic boundary conditions. We also observe the formation of localized structures in the evolution of a spatially uniform circularly polarized Alfvén wave. In both cases, the localized structures propagate with an amplitude independent velocity.

Description: In this paper, we report two density peaks in argon helicon plasma under an axial magnetic field from 0 G to 250 G with Boswell-type antenna driven by radio frequency (RF) power of 13.56 MHz. The first peak locates at 40–55 G and the second one at 110–165 G, as the RF power is sustainably increased from 100 W to 250 W at Ar pressure of 0.35 Pa. The absorbed power of two peaks shows a linear relationship with the magnetic field. End views of the discharge taken by intensified charge coupled device reveal that, when the first peak appeared, the discharge luminance moves to the edge of the tube as the magnetic field increases. For the second peak, the strong discharge area is centered at the two antenna legs after the magnetic field reaches a threshold value. Comparing with the simulation, we suggest that the efficient power absorption of two peaks at which the efficient power absorption mainly appears in the near-antenna region is due to the mode conversion in bounded non-uniform helicon plasma. The two low-field peaks are caused, to some extent, by the excitation of Trivelpiece-Gould wave through non-resonance conversion.

Description: Helicons are whistler modes with azimuthal wave numbers. They have been studied in solids and plasmas where boundaries play a role. The present work shows that very similar modes exist in unbounded gaseous plasmas. Instead of boundaries, the antenna properties determine the topology of the wave packets. The simplest antenna is a magnetic loop which excites m  = 0 or m  = 1 helicons depending on whether the dipole moment is aligned parallel or perpendicular to the ambient background magnetic field B 0 . While these low order helicons have been described by J. M. Urrutia and R. L. Stenzel [“Helicon modes in uniform plasmas. I. Low m modes,” Phys. Plasmas 22 , 092111 (2015)], the present work focuses on high order modes up to m  = 8. These are excited by antenna arrays forming magnetic multipoles. Their wave magnetic field has been measured in space and time in a large and uniform laboratory plasma free of boundary effects. The observed wave topology exhibits m pairs of unique field line spirals which may have inspired the name “helicon” to this mode. All field lines converge into these nested spirals which propagate like corkscrews along B 0 . The field lines near the axis of helicons are perpendicular to B 0 and circularly polarized as in parallel whistlers. Helical antennas couple to these transverse fields but not to the spiral fields of helicons. Using a circular antenna array of phased m  = 0 loops, right or left rotating or non-rotating multipole antenna fields are generated. They excite m    0 modes, showing that the plasma supports both modes equally well. The poor excitation of m  

Description: Helicons are electromagnetic waves with helical phase fronts propagating in the whistler mode in magnetized plasmas and solids. They have similar properties to electromagnetic waves with angular momentum in free space. Helicons are circularly polarized waves carrying spin angular momentum and orbital angular momentum due to their propagation around the ambient magnetic field B 0 . These properties have not been considered in the community of researchers working on helicon plasma sources, but are the topic of the present work. The present work focuses on the field topology of helicons in unbounded plasmas, not on helicon source physics. Helicons are excited in a large uniform laboratory plasma with a magnetic loop antenna whose dipole axis is aligned along or across B 0 . The wave fields are measured in orthogonal planes and extended to three dimensions (3D) by interpolation. Since density and B 0 are uniform, small amplitude waves from loops at different locations can be superimposed to generate complex antenna patterns. With a circular array of phase shifted loops, whistler modes with angular and axial wave propagation, i.e., helicons, are generated. Without boundaries radial propagation also arises. The azimuthal mode number m can be positive or negative while the field polarization remains right-hand circular. The conservation of energy and momentum implies that these field quantities are transferred to matter which causes damping or reflection. Wave-particle interactions with fast electrons are possible by Doppler shifted resonances. The transverse Doppler shift is demonstrated. Wave-wave interactions are also shown by showing collisions between different helicons. Whistler turbulence does not always have to be created by nonlinear wave-interactions but can also be a linear superposition of waves from random sources. In helicon collisions, the linear and/or orbital angular momenta can be canceled, which results in a great variety of field topologies. The work will be contrasted to the research on helicon plasma sources.

Description: The magnetohydrodynamic-kinetic hybrid theory has been extensively and successfully applied for interpreting experimental observations of macroscopic, low frequency instabilities, such as the resistive wall mode, in fusion plasmas. In this work, it is discovered that an analytic version of the hybrid formulation predicts a bifurcation of the mode dynamics while varying certain physical parameters of the plasma, such as the thermal particle collisionality or the ratio of the thermal ion to electron temperatures. This bifurcation can robustly occur under reasonably large parameter spaces as well as with different assumptions, for instance, on the particle collision model. Qualitatively similar bifurcation features are also observed in full toroidal computations presented in this work, based on a non-perturbative hybrid formulation.