PPPL-4906

Tendency of a Rotating Electron Plasma to Approach the Brillouin Limit

Authors: Renaud Gueroult, Amnon Fruchtman and Nathaniel J. Fisch

Abstract:
A neutral plasma is considered to be immersed in an axial magnetic eld together with a radial electric eld. If the electrons are magnetized, but the ions are not magnetized, then the electrons will rotate but the ions will not rotate, leading to current generation. The currents, in turn, weaken the axial magnetic eld, leading to an increase of the rotation frequency of the slow Brillouin mode. This produces a positive feedback e ect, further weakening the magnetic eld. The operating point thus tends to drift towards the Brillouin limit, possibly nding stability only in proximity to the limit itself. An example of this e ect might be the cylindrical Hall thruster con guration.
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Submitted to: Physics of Plasmas (May 2013)

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Download PPPL-4906 (pdf 867 KB 17 pp)
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