Document Type
Article
Publication Date
5-1-1993
Journal Title
Physics of Fluids B: Plasma Physics
Volume Number
5
Issue Number
5
First Page
1523
Last Page
1528
DOI
10.1063/1.860892
Version
Publisher PDF: the final published version of the article, with professional formatting and typesetting
Disciplines
Physics
Abstract
Positive/negative ion plasmas, composed of Ba+, SF6−, and residual electrons, were observed to display characteristics of strong turbulence.Experiments on the UCI Q machine linked the presence of negative ions (and the depletion of electrons) with large density fluctuations (δn/n≂1), large‐amplitude, low‐frequency electrostatic noise (f≤20 kHz), and rapid transport of ions across magnetic field lines (D⊥≂104 cm2/sec). Ion velocity distributions were heated parallel to and cooled perpendicular to the confining magnetic field. The partial pressure of gaseous SF6 was shown to serve as a regulator of plasma turbulence. Turbulence levels could be smoothly varied from quiescent states (δn/n≂0.01) to strongly turbulent states (δn/n≂1).
Digital USD Citation
Sheehan, D. P.; McWilliams, R.; and Rynn, N., "Adjustable levels of strong turbulence in a positive/negative ion plasma" (1993). Physics and Biophysics: Faculty Scholarship. 1.
https://digital.sandiego.edu/phys-faculty/1
