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An experimental investigation of parallel and oblique shock waves in a magnetized plasma

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 March 2009

A. D. Craig
A. D. Craig
Affiliation:
UKAEA Cuiham Laboratory, Abingdon, Berkshire
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Abstract

The Charybdis apparatus is designed to produce parallel and oblique shock waves in a magnetized plasma. An initial hydrogen plasma (nel 7 × 1020 m-3, T1 ˜ 1.3 eV) is produced in a Pyrex chamber (0.46 m cia., 1 2 m long) containing an axial magnetic field (B1 up to 0.2 T). A diffuse current front is produced in a fast-rising radial discharge between a central electrode and an annular outer electrode at one end of the chamber. The Lorentz force on the current sheet causes axial motion, and a quasisteady shock proffle propagates ahead. A clear shock separation is achieved across almost the complete radial extent for a wide range of initial parameters. The shock propagation angle to the initial field ranges from 0Ú to 40Ú. The Alfvén Mach number MA of the flow is varied by changing the initial field strength. Switch-on shock behaviour is demonstrated at a point of parallel propagation for low MA. For higher MA cases, no separated point of parallel propagation occurs in the shock profile.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Plasma Physics , Volume 12 , Issue 1 , August 1974 , pp. 129 - 148
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1974

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