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Title: Disruption of Current Filaments and Isotropization of the Magnetic Field in Counterstreaming Plasmas

Journal Article · · Physical Review Letters
 [1];  [2]
  1. SLAC National Accelerator Lab., Menlo Park, CA (United States). High Energy Density Science Division; Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA), Arpajon (France)
  2. SLAC National Accelerator Lab., Menlo Park, CA (United States). High Energy Density Science Division

In this paper, we study the stability of current filaments produced by the Weibel, or current filamentation, instability in weakly magnetized counterstreaming plasmas. It is shown that a resonance exists between the current-carrying ions and a longitudinal drift-kink mode that strongly deforms and eventually breaks the current filaments. Analytical estimates of the wavelength, growth rate, and saturation level of the resonant mode are derived and validated by three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations. Finally and furthermore, self-consistent simulations of counterstreaming plasmas indicate that this drift-kink mode is dominant in the slow down of the flows and in the isotropization of the magnetic field, playing an important role in the formation of collisionless shocks.

Research Organization:
SLAC National Accelerator Lab., Menlo Park, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Fusion Energy Sciences (FES) (SC-24)
Grant/Contract Number:
AC02-76SF00515
OSTI ID:
1457779
Journal Information:
Physical Review Letters, Journal Name: Physical Review Letters Journal Issue: 24 Vol. 120; ISSN 0031-9007
Publisher:
American Physical Society (APS)Copyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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Multi-scale dynamics of magnetic flux tubes and inverse magnetic energy transfer text January 2020
Stability analysis of a periodic system of relativistic current filaments journal July 2018
Characterizing filamentary magnetic structures in counter-streaming plasmas by Fourier analysis of proton images journal October 2019
Transport of moderately relativistic electron beam in dense plasma journal June 2019
Origin and impacts of the first cosmic rays journal September 2019
Evolution of Three-dimensional Relativistic Ion Weibel Instability: Competition with Kink Instability journal June 2019
Weibel-mediated Shocks Propagating into Inhomogeneous Electron–Positron Plasmas journal November 2019
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