Scaling Studies of Spheromak Formation and Equilibrium
نویسندگان
چکیده
Formation and equilibrium studies have been performed on the Swarthmore Spheromak Experiment (SSX). Spheromaks are formed with a magnetized coaxial plasma gun and equilibrium is established in both small (dsmall = 0.16 m) and large (dlarge = 3dsmall = 0.50 m) copper flux conservers. Using magnetic probe arrays we have verified that spheromak formation is governed solely by gun physics (in particular the ratio of gun current to flux, μ0Igun/Φgun) and is independent of the flux conserver dimensions. We have also verified that equilibrium is well described by the force free condition ∇ × B = λB (λ =constant), particularly early in decay. Departures from the force-free state are due to current profile effects described by a quadratic function λ = λ(ψ). Force-free SSX spheromaks will be merged to study magnetic reconnection in simple magnetofluid structures. PACS 52.55.Hc, 52.30.Bt Typeset using REVTEX 1
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