Experimental Study of Magnetic Reconnection in Laboratory Plasmas

Physics – Plasma Physics

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Magnetic reconnection plays a crucial role in determining the magnetic topology and dissipation in space and astrophysical plasmas as well as in laboratory plasmas. In this talk, recent progress due to laboratory studies of magnetic reconnection will be reviewed at first, including single particle dynamics near the X point and energetic ion generation during reconnection. Later, emphasis will be given to the local features of magnetic reconnection in the Magnetic Reconnection Experiment (MRX) where stable two-dimensional current sheets are formed and compared with Harris theory and two-fluid theory. The observed reconnection rates are found to be quantitatively consistent with a generalized Sweet-Parker model including the effective resistivity. The latter agrees excellently with its classical values in the high collisionality regime but significantly enhanced in the low collisionality regime. Strong local ion heating is measured by an optical probe during the reconnection process, and at least half of the increased ion energy must be due to nonclassical processes. Characteristics of high frequency electrostatic and electromagnetic fluctuations detected in the current sheet indicate the presence of lower-hybrid drift waves. However, these fluctuations are not necessarilly consistent with the observed resistivity enhancement. Possible implications of these results on reconnection in space and astrophysical plasmas will be discussed.

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