High-Beta Plasma Behaviour in a Canted Mirror
R. A. Dandl, H. O. Eason, A. C. England, and J.
C. Sprott
Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tenn., United States of
America
(Manuscript received 21 May 1973)
ABSTRACT
A high-beta hot-electron plasma was studied in an asymmetric magnetic
mirror
device with a variable cant angle. The plasma was produced by microwave
heating at a frequency corresponding to cold-electron-cyclotron
resonance
together with a higher frequency suitable for upper-off-resonance
heating.
The position of the high-beta plasma annulus was studied as a function
of cant angle and was found to correspond approximately to the position
of a midplane modulus-B contour. High-beta effects did modify the
spatial
location of the losses of energetic electrons into the loss cone but
had
little effect on the cold-plasma losses. Destabilization was not
observed
when the line-tying of the plasma centre was reduced with glass end
plates.
An asymmetry of the cold-plasma loss with respect to the equatorial
plane
was observed at small cant angles and an electric field model was
conjectured
to explain this behaviour.
Ref: R. A. Dandl, H. O. Eason, A. C. England, and J.
C. Sprott, Nuclear Fusion 13, 693-701 (1973)
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