Publications

2012

• Afterglow kinetics in oxygen pulsed discharges
  
  • Guerra V.
  • Marinov Daniil
  • Guaitella Olivier
  • Rousseau Antoine
  , 2012.
• Global model of a gridded-ion thruster powered by a radiofrequency inductive coil
  
  • Chabert Pascal
  • Arancibia Monreal J.
  • Bredin Jérôme
  • Popelier Lara
  • Aanesland Ane
  Physics of Plasmas, American Institute of Physics, 2012, 19, pp.195201. A global (volume-averaged) model of a gridded-ion thruster is proposed. The neutral propellant (xenon gas) is injected into the thruster chamber at a fixed rate and a plasma is generated by circulating a radiofrequency current in an inductive coil. The ions generated in this plasma are accelerated out of the thruster by a pair of DC biased grids. The neutralization downstream is not treated. Xenon atoms also flow out of the thruster across the grids. The model, based on particle and energy balance equations, solves for four global variables in the thruster chamber: the plasma density, the electron temperature, the neutral gas (atom) density, and the neutral gas temperature. The important quantities to evaluate the thruster efficiency and performances are calculated from these variables and from the voltage across the grids. It is found that the mass utilization efficiency rapidly decreases with the gas flow rate. However, the radiofrequency power transfer efficiency increases significantly with the injected gas flow rate. Therefore, there is a compromise to be found between these two quantities. (10.1063/1.4737114)
  DOI : 10.1063/1.4737114
• Entropy Generation across Earth's Collisionless Bow Shock
  
  • Parks G. K.
  • Lee E.
  • Mccarthy M.
  • Goldstein M. L.
  • Fu S. Y.
  • Cao J.B.
  • Canu Patrick
  • Lin N.
  • Wilber M.
  • Dandouras I.
  • Rème H.
  • Fazakerley A.
  Physical Review Letters, American Physical Society, 2012, 108, pp.061102. Earth's bow shock is a collisionless shock wave but entropy has never been directly measured across it. The plasma experiments on Cluster and Double Star measure 3D plasma distributions upstream and downstream of the bow shock allowing calculation of Boltzmann's entropy function H and his famous H theorem, dH/dt<=0. The collisionless Boltzmann (Vlasov) equation predicts that the total entropy does not change if the distribution function across the shock becomes nonthermal, but it allows changes in the entropy density. Here, we present the first direct measurements of entropy density changes across Earth's bow shock and show that the results generally support the model of the Vlasov analysis. These observations are a starting point for a more sophisticated analysis that includes 3D computer modeling of collisionless shocks with input from observed particles, waves, and turbulences. (10.1103/PhysRevLett.108.061102)
  DOI : 10.1103/PhysRevLett.108.061102
• Radiative properties of mixed nested cylindrical wire arrays on Zebra at UNR
  
  • Weller Michael E.
  • Safronova Alla S.
  • Kantsyrev Viktor L.
  • Esaulov A. A.
  • Coverdale C. A.
  • Chuvatin Alexandre S.
  • Ouart N. D.
  • Williamson Kenneth M.
  • Shrestha Ishor
  • Osborne Glenn C.
  • Shlyaptseva V. V.
  • Keim S. F.
  • Stafford A.
  High Energy Density Physics, Elsevier, 2012, 8 (2), pp.184-189. The dynamics of mixed nested cylindrical wire arrays were studied at the UNR Zebra generator with our existing theoretical and experimental tools to better understand the contributions of each array to the emitted radiation. In particular, experimental results of mixed brass (70% Cu, 30% Zn) and Al (5056, 5% Mg) nested cylindrical wire arrays are analyzed and compared. The loads used brass in the inner array and Al in the outer array, or alternately, Al in the inner array and brass in the outer array, with a mass ratio of 1:1 (outer to inner). Consequently, radiative properties of K-shell Al and Mg ions and L-shell Cu and Zn ions are compared as functions of the placements of the brass and Al wires on the inner and outer arrays. Results show that the placement of brass and Al, whether on the inner or outer array, dramatically affects the intensity of the X-ray emission. Specifically, the ratio of Cu L-shell to Al K-shell emissions changed from 4 when Al is in the outer array to 40 when brass is in the outer array, and the total radiated yield was highest when the brass was on the outer array (18 kJ, versus 15 kJ when brass is on the inner array). Each load was fielded twice to vary the timing of the time-gated imaging and spectral diagnostics. This provides a more complete understanding of the evolution of the plasma parameters over the X-ray pulse and highlights the importance of the time-gated diagnostics. (10.1016/j.hedp.2012.03.004)
  DOI : 10.1016/j.hedp.2012.03.004
• Thermodynamics of flow generation Momentum Transport, PV Homogenization and Entropy Production
  
  • Gürcan Özgür D.
  , 2012. http://canopus.cnu.ac.kr/lsap2012
• Dynamics of neutral gas depletion investigated by time- and space-resolved measurement of xenon atom ground state density
  
  • Liard Laurent
  • Aanesland Ane
  • Chabert Pascal
  Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics, IOP Publishing, 2012, 45, pp.235201. The dynamics of neutral gas depletion in high-density plasmas is investigated by time- and space-resolved measurements of the xenon ground state density. Two-photon absorbed laser induced fluorescence experiments were carried out in a helicon reactor operating at 10 mTorr in xenon gas. When the plasma is magnetized, a plasma column is formed from the bottom of the chamber up to the pumping region. In this situation it is found that two phenomena, with different time scales, are responsible for the neutral gas depletion. The magnetized plasma column is ignited in a short (millisecond) time scale leading to a neutral gas depletion at the discharge centre and to an increase of neutral gas density at the reactor walls. This is explained both by neutral gas heating and by the rise of the plasma pressure at the discharge centre. Then, on a much longer (second) time scale, the overall neutral gas density in the reactor decreases due to higher pumping efficiency when the magnetized plasma column is ignited. The pumping enhancement is not observed when the plasma is not magnetized, probably because in this case the dense plasma column vanishes and the plasma is more localized near the antenna. (10.1088/0022-3727/45/23/235201)
  DOI : 10.1088/0022-3727/45/23/235201
• Electron energy distribution function and plasma parameters across magnetic filters
  
  • Aanesland Ane
  • Bredin Jérôme
  • Chabert Pascal
  • Godyak V.
  Applied Physics Letters, American Institute of Physics, 2012, 100, pp.044102. The electron energy distribution function (EEDF) is measured across a magnetic filter in inductively coupled plasmas. The measured EEDFs are found to be Maxwellian in the elastic energy range with the corresponding electron temperature monotonously decreasing along the positive gradient of the magnetic field. At the maximum of the magnetic field, the electron temperature reaches its minimum and remains nearly constant in the area of the negative gradient of the field, where the plasma density distribution exhibits a local minimum. (10.1063/1.3680088)
  DOI : 10.1063/1.3680088
• Analysis of radiation from silver HED plasma sources with the potential for lasing
  
  • Weller Michael E.
  • Safronova Alla S.
  • Kantsyrev Viktor L.
  • Esaulov A. A.
  • Stafford A.
  • Shrestha Ishor
  • Osborne Glenn C.
  • Shlyaptseva V. V.
  • Keim S. F.
  • Zunino H. A.
  • Chuvatin Alexandre S.
  • Apruzese J. P.
  • Golovkin I. E.
  • Macfarlane J. J.
  , 2012, pp.2P78. Silver (Ag) high energy density plasmas were produced using uniform and combined single planar wire array (SPWA) z-pinches. Ag SPWAs were recently introduced as an efficient x-ray radiator and have shown to create L-shell plasmas that have the highest electron temperature (>;1.8 keV) observed on Zebra so far and upwards of 30 kJ of energy output, which is of interest for future applications of inertial confinement fusion1. A set of diagnostics included fast, filtered x-ray diodes; a Ni bolometer; laser shadowgraphy and optical streak cameras; time-gated and time-integrated x-ray pinhole cameras; and time-integrated spatially resolved (TISR) and time-gated spatially-integrated (TGSI) x-ray spectrometers. In particular, a new time-gated hard x-ray spectrometer was fielded to attain first results to understand how Ag plasmas evolve in time. In addition, an important question about such Ag plasmas is whether lasing occurs in the Na-like and Ne-like soft x-ray range, and if so, at what gains? Our suite of theoretical diagnostics was expanded with HELIOS-CR code, that was utilized to study implosion characterisitcs and radiative characteristics of Ag wire arrays as well as to calculate possible lasing gains. Lastly, the results of new experiments on Zebra with the load current multiplier (LCM) at enhanced current of 1.5 - 1.7 MA were analyzed and compared to those of standard configurations. (10.1109/PLASMA.2012.6383634)
  DOI : 10.1109/PLASMA.2012.6383634
• Centrifugally stimulated exospheric ion escape at Mercury
  
  • Delcourt Dominique C.
  • Seki K.
  • Terada N.
  • Moore T. E.
  Geophysical Research Letters, American Geophysical Union, 2012, 39, pp.22105. We investigate the transport of ions in the low-altitude magnetosphere of Mercury. We show that, because of small spatial scales, the centrifugal effect due to curvature of the E × B drift paths can lead to significant particle energization in the parallel direction. We demonstrate that because of this effect, ions with initial speed smaller than the escape speed such as those produced via thermal desorption can overcome gravity and escape into the magnetosphere. The escape route of this low-energy exosphere originating material is largely controlled by the magnetospheric convection rate. This escape route spreads over a narrower range of altitudes when the convection rate increases. Bulk transport of low-energy planetary material thus occurs within a limited region of space once moderate magnetospheric convection is established. These results suggest that, via release of material otherwise gravitationally trapped, the E × B related centrifugal acceleration is an important mechanism for the net supply of plasma to the magnetosphere of Mercury. (10.1029/2012GL054085)
  DOI : 10.1029/2012GL054085
• THEMIS observation of chorus elements without a gap at half the gyrofrequency
  
  • Kurita S.
  • Katoh Y.
  • Omura Y.
  • Angelopoulos V.
  • Cully C. M.
  • Le Contel Olivier
  • Misawa H.
  Journal of Geophysical Research Space Physics, American Geophysical Union/Wiley, 2012, 117, pp.11223. Using waveform data obtained by one of the THEMIS satellites, we report properties of rising tone chorus elements without a gap at half the gyrofrequency in a region close to the magnetic equator. The wave normal angle of the chorus elements is typically field-aligned in the entire frequency range of both upper-band and lower-band chorus emissions. We find that the observed frequency sweep rates are consistent with the estimation based on the nonlinear wave growth theory of Omura et al. (2008). In addition, we compare the frequency profiles of the chorus wave amplitudes with those of the optimum and threshold wave amplitudes derived from the nonlinear wave growth theory for triggering rising tone chorus emissions. The results of the comparison show a reasonable agreement, indicating that rising tone chorus elements are continually generated through a triggering process which generates elements with the optimum amplitudes for nonlinear growth. (10.1029/2012JA018076)
  DOI : 10.1029/2012JA018076
• Velocity diffusion in plasma waves excited by electron beams
  
  • Volokitin A.
  • Krafft C.
  Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion, IOP Publishing, 2012, 54, pp.085002. New results provided by numerical simulations of the weak instability of a warm electron beam in a collisionless plasma are presented. The theoretical model considers the self-consistent resonant interactions of beam particles with wave packets of broad spectra; it is derived using some of the initial approximations of the standard derivation of the quasilinear diffusion equation in the weak turbulence approach, without, however, the assumption of randomly phased waves. A huge number of particle trajectories calculated over long times by a symplectic code are analyzed using various statistical algorithms. The dynamics of the beam relaxation and the saturation of the wave spectrum are studied and compared with the analytical solutions provided by the quasilinear theory of weak turbulence. The most interesting results concern the presence of strong and persistent irregularities in the wave energy spectrum at saturation, which are linked to large velocity variations observed in the particles' dynamics and to non-Gaussian local diffusion. Quantitative estimates of the diffusion coefficients are given and compared with predictions of the weak turbulence theory. (10.1088/0741-3335/54/8/085002)
  DOI : 10.1088/0741-3335/54/8/085002
• Quasilinear transport modelling at low magnetic shear
  
  • Citrin Jonathan
  • Bourdelle C.
  • Cottier P.
  • Escande D.F.
  • Gürcan Özgür D.
  • Hatch D.R.
  • Hogeweij G.M.D.
  • Jenko F.
  • Pueschel M.J.
  Physics of Plasmas, American Institute of Physics, 2012, 19, pp.062305. Accurate and computationally inexpensive transport models are vital for routine and robust predictions of tokamak turbulent transport. To this end, the QuaLiKiz [Bourdelle et al., Phys. Plasmas 14, 112501 (2007)] quasilinear gyrokinetic transport model has been recently developed. QuaLiKiz flux predictions have been validated by non-linear simulations over a wide range in parameter space. However, a discrepancy is found at low magnetic shear, where the quasilinear fluxes are significantly larger than the non-linear predictions. This discrepancy is found to stem from two distinct sources: the turbulence correlation length in the mixing length rule and an increase in the ratio between the quasilinear and non-linear transport weights, correlated with increased non-linear frequency broadening. Significantly closer agreement between the quasilinear and non-linear predictions is achieved through the development of an improved mixing length rule, whose assumptions are validated by non-linear simulations. (10.1063/1.4719697)
  DOI : 10.1063/1.4719697
• Symmetry breaking effects of density gradient on parallel momentum transport: A new rau s * effect
  
  • Singh Rameswar
  • Singh R.
  • Kaw P.
  • Gürcan Özgür D.
  • Diamond P.H.
  • Nordman H.
  Physics of Plasmas, American Institute of Physics, 2012, 19, pp.012301. Symmetry breaking effects of density gradient on parallel momentum transport is studied via quasilinear theory. It is shown that finite &#961;*s(&#8801;&#961;s/Ln), where &#961;s is ion sound radius and Ln is density scale length, leads to symmetry breaking of the ion temperature gradient (ITG) eigenfunction. This broken symmetry persists even in the absence of mean poloidal (from radial electric field shear) and toroidal flows. This effect, as explained in the text, originates from the divergence of polarization particle current in the ion continuity equation. The form of the eigenfunction allows the microturbulence to generate parallel residual stress via &#12296;k&#8214;&#12297; symmetry breaking. Comparison with the &#8594;E×&#8594;B shear driven parallel residual stress, parallel polarization stress and turbulence intensity gradient driven parallel residual stress are discussed. It is shown that this &#961;*s driven parallel residual stress may become comparable to &#8594;E×&#8594;B shear driven parallel residual stress in small Ln region. In the regular drift wave ordering, where &#961;*s&#8810;1, this effect is found to be of the same order as the parallel polarization stress. This &#961;*s driven parallel residual stress can also overtake the turbulence intensity gradient driven parallel residual stress in strong density gradient region whereas the later one is dominant in the strong profile curvature region. The parallel momentum diffusivity is found to remain undisturbed by this &#961;*s effect as long as the turbulence intensity inhomogenity is not important. (10.1063/1.3672518)
  DOI : 10.1063/1.3672518
• An electromagnetic theory of turbulence driven poloidal rotation
  
  • Mcdevitt C.J.
  • Gürcan Özgür D.
  Physics of Plasmas, American Institute of Physics, 2012, 19, pp.102311. An electromagnetic theory of turbulence driven poloidal rotation is developed with particular emphasis on understanding poloidal rotation in finite-&#946; plasmas. A relation linking the flux of polarization charge to the divergence of the total turbulent stress is derived for electromagnetic gyrokinetic modes. This relation is subsequently utilized to derive a constraint on the net electromagnetic turbulent stress exerted on the poloidal flow. Various limiting cases of this constraint are considered, where it is found that electromagnetic contributions to the turbulent stress may either enhance or reduce the net turbulent stress depending upon the branch of turbulence excited. (10.1063/1.4764078)
  DOI : 10.1063/1.4764078
• Diagnostic emission and absorption spectroscopy
  
  • Roepcke J.
  • Rousseau Antoine
  • Lavrov B.P.
  • Davies P.B.
  , 2012.
• Electric and magnetic contributions to spatial diffusion in collisionless plasmas
  
  • Smets Roch
  • Belmont Gérard
  • Aunai Nicolas
  Physics of Plasmas, American Institute of Physics, 2012, 19, pp.102309. We investigate the role played by the different self-consistent fluctuations for particle diffusion in a magnetized plasma. We focus especially on the contribution of the electric fluctuations and how it combines with the (already investigated) magnetic fluctuations and with the velocity fluctuations. For that issue, we compute with a hybrid code the value of the diffusion coefficient perpendicular to the mean magnetic field and its dependence on the particle velocity. This study is restricted to small to intermediate level of electromagnetic fluctuations and focuses on particle velocities on the order of few times the Alfvén speed. We briefly discuss the consequences for cosmic ray modulation and for the penetration of thermal solar wind particles in the Earth magnetosphere. (10.1063/1.4762845)
  DOI : 10.1063/1.4762845
• Electron and wave characteristics observed by the THEMIS satellites near the magnetic equator during a pulsating aurora
  
  • Nakajima A.
  • Shiokawa K.
  • Sakaguchi K.
  • Miyoshi Y.
  • Lee S.
  • Angelopoulos V.
  • Le Contel Olivier
  • Mcfadden J. P.
  • Bonnell J. W.
  • Fornacon K.-H.
  • Donovan E.
  Journal of Geophysical Research Space Physics, American Geophysical Union/Wiley, 2012, 117, pp.3219. Based on conjugate ground and THEMIS satellite observations, we show electron spectra and wave characteristics near the magnetic equatorial plane during a pulsating aurora event on the high latitude side of the auroral oval. The pulsating aurora was observed by a 30-Hz sampled all-sky imager (ASI) at Gillam (56.4°N, 265.4°E), Canada, at 0840-0910 UT on 8 January 2008. The auroral intensity pulsation at the possible THEMIS D (THD) footprints had frequency peaks at 0.1-0.2 Hz. The footprint of THD was in the poleward part of the proton aurora observed by a meridian-scanning photometer. After auroral pulsation began at 0842 UT, both THD and THEMIS E which was near THD in the mid-tail at 11.6-11.8 R<SUB>E</SUB>, observed enhanced field-aligned electron fluxes at energies of 1-10 keV. However, the amplitudes of whistler mode waves and electrostatic cyclotron harmonics (ECH) waves observed by THD with the highest sampling rate of 8 kHz were not significant, showing a marked contrast to the recent report of clear correlation between whistler mode waves and auroral pulsations observed at 5-9 R<SUB>E</SUB>. We suggest that the observed field-aligned electrons, which are probably caused by Fermi-type acceleration associated with earthward plasma flow in the mid-tail plasma sheet, are modulated by some wave processes to cause pulsating auroras. (10.1029/2011JA017066)
  DOI : 10.1029/2011JA017066
• Comparison of a hybrid model to a global model of atmospheric pressure radio-frequency capacitive discharges
  
  • Lazzaroni Claudia
  • Lieberman M.A.
  • Lichtenberg A.J.
  • Chabert Pascal
  Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics, IOP Publishing, 2012, 45, pp.495204. A one-dimensional hybrid analyticalnumerical global model of atmospheric pressure radio-frequency (rf) driven capacitive discharges, previously developed, is compared with a basic global model. A helium feed gas with small admixtures of oxygen is studied. For the hybrid model, the electrical characteristics are calculated analytically as a current-driven homogeneous discharge. The electron power balance is solved analytically to determine a time-varying Maxwellian electron temperature, which oscillates on the rf timescale. Averaging over the rf period yields effective rate coefficients for gas phase activated processes. For the basic global model, the electron temperature is constant in time and the sheath physics is neglected. For both models, the particle balance relations for all species are integrated numerically to determine the equilibrium discharge parameters. Variations of discharge parameters with composition and rf power are determined and compared. The rate coefficients for electron-activated processes are strongly temperature dependent, leading to significantly larger neutral and charged particle densities for the hybrid model. For small devices, finite sheath widths limit the operating regimes to low O2 fractions. This is captured by the hybrid model but cannot be predicted from the basic global model. (10.1088/0022-3727/45/49/495204)
  DOI : 10.1088/0022-3727/45/49/495204
• Plasma decay in the afterglow of a high-voltage nanosecond discharge in air
  
  • Aleksandrov N.L.
  • Anokhin E.M.
  • Kindysheva S.V.
  • Kirpichnikov A.A.
  • Kosarev I.N.
  • Nudnova M.M.
  • Starikovskaia Svetlana
  • Starikovskii A.Yu.
  Fizika Plazmy / Plasma Physics Reports, MAIK Nauka/Interperiodica, 2012, 38 (2), pp.179-186. The decay of air plasma produced by a high-voltage nanosecond discharge at room temperature and gas pressures in the range of 110 Torr was studied experimentally and theoretically. The time dependence of the electron density was measured with a microwave interferometer. The initial electron density was about 10¹2 cm3. The discharge homogeneity was monitored using optical methods. The dynamics of the charged particle densities in the discharge afterglow was simulated by numerically solving the balance equations for electron and ions and the equation for the electron temperature. It was shown that, under these experimental conditions, plasma electrons are mainly lost due to dissociative and three-body recombination with ions. Agreement between the measured and calculated electron densities was achieved only when the rate constant of the three-body electronion recombination was increased by one order of magnitude and the temperature dependence of this rate constant was modified. This indicates that the mechanism for three- body recombination of molecular ions differs from that of the well-studied mechanism of atomic ion recombination. (10.1134/S1063780X12010011)
  DOI : 10.1134/S1063780X12010011
• On time resolved gas temperature measurements in a pulsed dc plasma using quantum cascade laser absorption spectroscopy
  
  • Hübner M.
  • Marinov Daniil
  • Guaitella Olivier
  • Rousseau Antoine
  • Roepcke J.
  Measurement Science and Technology, IOP Publishing, 2012, 23, pp.115602. With a time resolution of 33 µs, the gas temperature in a pulsed dc air plasma admixed with 0.8% NO has been measured by quantum cascade laser absorption spectroscopy (QCLAS). For this purpose, the temperature dependent intensity ratios of two absorption structures of NO at 1900 cm&#8722;1 (5.26 µm) have been used. The QCLAS system worked in the Intra Pulse Mode with a pulse repetition frequency of 30 kHz leading to a spectrum recorded each 33 µs. In a low pressure discharge, the influence of nonlinear absorption phenomena causing strong distorted absorption structures of NO has been taken into account by a calibration routine based on tabulated line strengths. Different mean plasma currents have been applied to the discharge leading to gas temperature values ranging from about 300 K up to about 500 K. (10.1088/0957-0233/23/11/115602)
  DOI : 10.1088/0957-0233/23/11/115602
• Tailored voltage waveform deposition of Microcrystalline Silicon thin films from hydrogen-diluted silane and silicon tetrafluoride: optoelectronic properties of films
  
  • Johnson E.V.
  • Pouliquen S.
  • Delattre Pierre-Alexandre
  • Booth Jean-Paul
  Japanese Journal of Applied Physics, Japan Society of Applied Physics, 2012, 51, pp.08HF01. The use of tailored voltage waveforms (TVW's) to excite a plasma for the deposition of thin films of hydrogenated microcrystalline silicon (µc-Si:H) has been shown to be an effective technique to decouple mean ion bombardment energy (IBE) from injected power. In this work, we examine the changes in material properties controlled by this technique through Raman scattering and spectroscopic ellipsometry for films deposited from H2-diluted SiH4, and we examine the electrical properties of such films using temperature dependent conductivity. As the laboratory-scale deposition system used had neither a load lock nor an oxygen filter in the H2 line, accidental O-doping was observed for the µc-Si:H films. We investigated suppression of this doping by adding varying amounts of SiF4, and using an SiF4/Ar pre-etch step to clean the reactor. This technique is shown to be effective in decreasing the accidental doping of the films, and intrinsic µc-Si:H films are produced with an activation energy of up to 0.55 eV. As well, an important difference in the amorphous-to-microcrystalline transition is observed once SiF4 is included in the gas mixture. (10.1143/JJAP.51.08HF01)
  DOI : 10.1143/JJAP.51.08HF01
• Dynamic Martian magnetosphere: Transient twist induced by a rotation of the IMF
  
  • Modolo Ronan
  • Chanteur Gérard
  • Dubinin Eduard
  Geophysical Research Letters, American Geophysical Union, 2012, 39 (1), pp.L01106. Simulation studies of the Martian environment are usually restricted to stationary situations under various steady conditions of the solar wind and solar radiation. Dynamic transients and their implications have so far attracted little attention although global simulation models can provide valuable insights to understand disagreements between simulations and in situ observations. We make use of a three dimensional multispecies hybrid simulation model to investigate the response of the Martian plasma environment to a sudden rotation of the IMF. The simulation model couples charged and neutral species via three ionisation mechanisms: the absorption of solar extreme ultraviolet radiation, the impact of solar wind electrons, and the charge exchange between ions and neutral atoms. When a rotational discontinuity conveyed by the solar wind reaches the Martian environment the bow shock adapts quickly to the new solar wind conditions in contrast to the induced magnetosphere, especially the magnetic lobes in the wake. Timescales necessary to recover a stationary state can be estimated from such simulations and have some implications for space observations especially in the use of magnetic field proxies and for organizing particle measurements made by a spacecraft like Mars Express without an onboard magnetometer. (10.1029/2011GL049895)
  DOI : 10.1029/2011GL049895
• Shell-Reduced MHD: weak and strong turbulence
  
  • Grappin Roland
  • Verdini Andrea
  , 2012, 14, pp.3856. MHD turbulence with guide field B0 is studied using the shell model for Reduced MHD, with the aim of characterizing the scaling, and anisotropy of RMHD at high Reynolds number. A basic prediction of anisotropic turbulence theory (critical balance or CB) is that, in presence of large enough B0, the 1D perpendicular energy spectrum should exhibit a k&#8869;-2 scaling characteristic of weak nonlinear coupling at large scales, followed by a break and a k&#8869;-5/3 scaling at smaller scales. Previous numerical simulations never obtained such double spectra, but instead displayed single power-laws with a monotonous increase of their index when B0 was increased. In the present work we observe for the first time the double scaling, possibly thanks to the high Reynolds number reachable in shell models. A corollary of the CB theory is that a k||-2 spectrum develops in the range with strong k&#8869;-5/3 scaling, characterizing spectral anisotropy. In our study, we find that, although the basic paradigm of the CB are verified, the parallel spectrum differs, showing an over-excitation of parallel modes, due to high-frequencies of the large perpendicular eddies. This proves on the one hand that the CB theory is well adapted to the RMHD model but on the other hand that the model is richer than previously thought.
• Implosions of larger size wire arrays at enhanced current of 1.51.7 MA on Zebra with LCM
  
  • Safronova Alla S.
  • Esaulov A. A.
  • Kantsyrev Viktor L.
  • Stafford A.
  • Weller Michael E.
  • Shlyaptseva V. V.
  • Zunino H. A.
  • Shrestha Ishor
  • Osborne Glenn C.
  • Keim S. F.
  • Chuvatin Alexandre S.
  • Coverdale C. A.
  , 2012, pp.6C7. Experiments on Zebra with a Load Current Multiplier (LCM, which provides an enhanced current of 1.5-1.7 MA) allow the implosion of larger wire array loads than possible with the standard current of 1 MA. Advantages of the larger wire arrays include enhanced energy coupling to plasmas and better diagnostic access to observable plasma regions. Diagnostics, fielded on 10 beam lines, included PCD, XRD, and EUV detectors, X-ray/EUV spectrometers and X-ray pinhole cameras, and laser shadowgraphy. For this work, we collected and analyzed the experimental results from standard and modified triple planar wire arrays (TPWA), as well as cylindrical wire arrays (CWA). The anode-cathode gap in these experiments with LCM was 1 cm, which is half the gap used in the standard mode. For TPWAs, two outer wire planes were made out of mid-atomic-number wire material (Ni or Cu) with the inter-row gap increased from 1.5 or 3 mm (usually used at 1 MA current) up to 4.5 mm. The different designs of a central wire plane from Al were implemented to investigate its role as a magnetic field extruder to prevent the formation of closed magnetic configurations around each wire plane. Previous work has shown that larger double planar wire arrays (at a standard current) can block the inward motion of ablated plasma jets. Therefore, multi-planar wire arrays provide a new test bed to study jet formations in larger wire arrays for laboratory astrophysics. In addition, we measured higher linear radiation yield and the high-temperature precursor Al plasmas, not previously observable in experiments on Zebra at 1 Ma current. However, the observation of high-temperature precursor plasmas from Cu CWAs at enhanced current was consistent with previous findings at a standard current of 1 MA. (10.1109/PLASMA.2012.6384037)
  DOI : 10.1109/PLASMA.2012.6384037
• On the Origin of the 1/f Spectrum in the Solar Wind Magnetic Field
  
  • Verdini Andrea
  • Grappin Roland
  • Pinto Rui
  • Velli Marco
  The Astrophysical Journal Letters, Bristol : IOP Publishing, 2012, 750 (2), pp.L33. We present a mechanism for the formation of the low-frequency 1/f magnetic spectrum based on numerical solutions of a shell-reduced MHD model of the turbulent dynamics inside the sub-Alfvénic solar wind. We assign reasonably realistic profiles to the wind speed and the density along the radial direction, and a radial magnetic field. Alfvén waves of short periodicity (600 s) are injected at the base of the chromosphere, penetrate into the corona, and are partially reflected, thus triggering a turbulent cascade. The cascade is strong for the reflected wave while it is weak for the outward propagating waves. Reflection at the transition region recycles the strong turbulent spectrum into the outward weak spectrum, which is advected beyond the Alfvénic critical point without substantial evolution. There, the magnetic field has a perpendicular power-law spectrum with slope close to the Kolmogorov 5/3. The parallel spectrum is inherited from the frequency spectrum of large (perpendicular) eddies. The shape is a double power law with slopes of sime 1 and 2 at low and high frequencies, respectively, with the position of the break depending on the injected spectrum. We suggest that the double power-law spectrum measured by Helios at 0.3 AU, where the average magnetic field is not aligned with the radial (contrary to our assumptions), results from the combination of such different spectral slopes. At low frequency the parallel spectrum dominates with its characteristic 1/f shape, while at higher frequencies its steep spectral slope (2) is masked by the more energetic perpendicular spectrum (slope 5/3). (10.1088/2041-8205/750/2/L33)
  DOI : 10.1088/2041-8205/750/2/L33