Investigation of an ion-ion hybrid Alfven wave resonator
- Physics and Astronomy Department, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California 90095 (United States)
A theoretical and experimental investigation is made of a wave resonator based on the concept of wave reflection along the confinement magnetic field at a spatial location where the wave frequency matches the local value of the ion-ion hybrid frequency. Such a situation can be realized by shear Alfven waves in a magnetized plasma with two ion species because this mode has zero parallel group velocity and experiences a cut-off at the ion-ion hybrid frequency. Since the ion-ion hybrid frequency is proportional to the magnetic field, it is expected that a magnetic well configuration in a two-ion plasma can result in an Alfven wave resonator. Such a concept has been proposed in various space plasma studies and could have relevance to mirror and tokamak fusion devices. This study demonstrates such a resonator in a controlled laboratory experiment using a H{sup +}-He{sup +} mixture. The resonator response is investigated by launching monochromatic waves and impulses from a magnetic loop antenna. The observed frequency spectra are found to agree with predictions of a theoretical model of trapped eigenmodes.
- OSTI ID:
- 22113323
- Journal Information:
- Physics of Plasmas, Vol. 20, Issue 1; Other Information: (c) 2013 American Institute of Physics; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 1070-664X
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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