Generation of magnetized collisionless shocks by a novel, laser-driven magnetic piston
Abstract
We present experiments on the Trident laser facility at Los Alamos National Laboratory which demonstrate key elements in the production of laser-driven, magnetized, laboratory-scaled astrophysical collisionless shocks. These include the creation of a novel magnetic piston to couple laser energy to a background plasma and the generation of a collisionless shock precursor. We also observe evidence of decoupling between a laser-driven fast ion population and a background plasma, in contrast to the coupling of laser-ablated slow ions with background ions through the magnetic piston. 2D hybrid simulations further support these developments and show the coupling of the slow to ambient ions, the formation of a magnetic and density compression pulses consistent with a collisionless shock, and the decoupling of the fast ions.
- Publication:
-
Physics of Plasmas
- Pub Date:
- July 2012
- DOI:
- Bibcode:
- 2012PhPl...19g0702S
- Keywords:
-
- laser ablation;
- plasma density;
- plasma light propagation;
- plasma magnetohydrodynamics;
- plasma shock waves;
- plasma simulation;
- plasma transport processes;
- 52.35.Tc;
- 52.38.Mf;
- 52.65.Ww;
- 52.25.Fi;
- 52.25.Xz;
- 52.30.Cv;
- Shock waves and discontinuities;
- Laser ablation;
- Hybrid methods;
- Transport properties;
- Magnetized plasmas;
- Magnetohydrodynamics