Kinetic simulations comparing quasi-parallel and quasi-perpendicular piston-driven collisionless shock dynamics in magnetized laboratory plasmas
Issued Date
2024-01-01
Resource Type
ISSN
1070664X
eISSN
10897674
Scopus ID
2-s2.0-85183710088
Journal Title
Physics of Plasmas
Volume
31
Issue
1
Rights Holder(s)
SCOPUS
Bibliographic Citation
Physics of Plasmas Vol.31 No.1 (2024)
Suggested Citation
Pongkitiwanichakul P., Schaeffer D.B., Fox W., Ruffolo D., Donaghy J., Germaschewski K. Kinetic simulations comparing quasi-parallel and quasi-perpendicular piston-driven collisionless shock dynamics in magnetized laboratory plasmas. Physics of Plasmas Vol.31 No.1 (2024). doi:10.1063/5.0178884 Retrieved from: https://repository.li.mahidol.ac.th/handle/20.500.14594/97124
Title
Kinetic simulations comparing quasi-parallel and quasi-perpendicular piston-driven collisionless shock dynamics in magnetized laboratory plasmas
Corresponding Author(s)
Other Contributor(s)
Abstract
Magnetized collisionless shocks are common in astrophysical systems, and scaled versions can be created in laboratory experiments by utilizing laser-driven piston plasmas to create these shocks in a magnetized background plasma. A key parameter for these experiments is the angle θB between the shock propagation direction and the background magnetic field. We performed quasi-1D piston-driven shock simulations to explore shock formation, evolution, and key observables relevant to laboratory experiments for a range of shock angles between θ B = 90 ° to θ B = 30 ° . Our results show that the spatial and temporal scales of shock formation for all angles considered are similar when expressed in terms of the perpendicular component of the magnetic field. In a steady state, ion and electron temperatures become more isotropic, and the electron-to-ion temperature ratio is higher for smaller θB. At θ B = 30 ° , ion heating parallel to the magnetic field becomes dominant, associated with more ions being reflected at one discontinuity and subsequently trapped by the next discontinuity due to shock reformation.