Turbulence in electrostatic ion acoustic shocks

Technical Report · Tue May 01 04:00:00 EDT 1973

OSTI ID:4365112

Means, R W; Coroniti, F V; Wong, A Y; White, R B

Three types of collisionless electrostatic ion acoustic shocks are investigated using a double plasma (CP) device; (1) laminar shocks; (2) small- amplitude turbulent shocks in which the turbulence is confined to be upstream of the shock potential jump; and (3) large-amplitude turbulent shocks in which the wave turbulence cccurs throughout the shock transition. The wave turbulence is generated by ions reflected from the shock potential; linear-theory spatial- growth increments agree with experimental values. The experimental relationship between the shock Mach number and the shock potential is shown to be consistent with theoretical shock models that assume that the electrons are isothermal. Theoretical calculations that assume a trapped electron equation of a state and a turbulently flattened velocity distrubution function for the reflected ions yields a Mach number vs potential relationship in agreement with experiment. (STAR) (auth)

• Research Organization: California Univ., Los Angeles (USA). Dept. of Physics
• DOE Contract Number: AT(04-3)-34
• NSA Number: NSA-29-014464
• OSTI ID: 4365112
• Report Number(s): N--73-31651; NASA-CR--135490; PPG--149
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

*ION ACOUSTIC WAVES-- TURBULENCE
*PLASMA WAVES-- ION ACOUSTIC WAVES
AMPLITUDES
COLLISIONLESS PLASMA
DISTRIBUTION FUNCTIONS
MACH NUMBER
N70900* --Physics--Controlled Thermonuclear Research--Wave Phenomena
SHOCK WAVES
VELOCITY