Electric Field Formation in Laboratory Plasmas.

Laboratory investigations on the formation of space-related electric fields have been performed using collisionless magnetized-plasma flows. In a set of experments, potential differences are externally applied along magnetic-field lines, different plasmas come into contact with each other under the currentless condition, a high-speed plasma flow is injected into a region of converging manetic-field lines, large-amplitude electron plasma waves are generated in a uniform magnetic field, and local electron-cyclotron resonances occur in various kinds of nonuniform magnetic fields. It is found that the elcetric field is formed in the region of density gradient, a U-shaped double layer (DL) is accompaned by ion-cyclotron oscillations, a DL is formed in the currentless system, and that an electron local-plug results in the formation of a potential dip and hump with a scale length of the order of Debye length. Electron- and ion-acceleration electric fields with a scale lengths of a magnetic-field gradient are also found to be formed by passing ions and electrons through nonuniform magnetic fields, respectively.

[1]  F. Mozer,et al.  Parallel electric fields in the upward current region of the aurora: Indirect and direct observations , 2002 .

[2]  R. Ergun,et al.  Characteristics of parallel electric fields in the downward current region of the aurora , 2002 .

[3]  N. Sato,et al.  Plasma Confining Potential Self-Consistently Formed by Local Electron Cyclotron Resonance in a Well-Shaped Magnetic Field , 2002 .

[4]  N. Sato,et al.  Potential formation triggered by field-aligned electron acceleration due to electron cyclotron resonance along diverging magnetic-field lines , 2000 .

[5]  N. Sato,et al.  Plasma Dike Potential Sustained by Local Electron Cyclotron Resonance along Converging Magnetic-Field Lines , 2000 .

[6]  N. Singh.  Electron holes as a common feature of double‐layer‐Driven plasma waves , 2000 .

[7]  T. Kaneko,et al.  Potential Structure Modified by Electron Cyclotron Resonance in a Plasma Flow along Magnetic Field Lines with Mirror Configuration , 1998 .

[8]  Rajkumar Roychoudhury,et al.  Ion-acoustic double layers , 1989, Journal of Plasma Physics.

[9]  Hatakeyama,et al.  Potential formation in a high-speed plasma flow along converging magnetic field lines. , 1988, Physical review letters.

[10]  Hatakeyama,et al.  Three-dimensional double layers inducing ion-cyclotron oscillations in a collisionless plasma. , 1986, Physical review letters.

[11]  N. Hershkowitz,et al.  Laboratory evidence for ion-acoustic-type double layers , 1984 .

[12]  N. Sato,et al.  Formation of Electrostatic Potential Barrier between Different Plasmas , 1983 .

[13]  A. Hasegawa,et al.  Existence of a negative potential solitary‐wave structure and formation of a double layer , 1982 .

[14]  S. Iizuka,et al.  Dynamics of a potential barrier formed on the tail of a moving double layer in a collisionless plasma , 1982 .

[15]  S. Iizuka,et al.  Ultrastrong stationary double layers in a nondischarge magnetoplasma , 1981 .

[16]  F. Perkins,et al.  Double layers without current , 1981 .

[17]  S. Iizuka,et al.  Buneman Instability, Pierce Instability, and Double-Layer Formation in a Collisionless Plasma , 1979 .