Laboratory Studies of Astrophysical Jets

TL;DR

This paper reviews recent laboratory experiments simulating astrophysical jets, focusing on short-lived, centimeter-scale jets created with z-pinch machines to better understand star-formation outflows.

Contribution

It introduces and discusses the use of laboratory z-pinch experiments to simulate and study protostellar jets, providing new insights into astrophysical jet phenomena.

Findings

Laboratory jets mimic astrophysical jet properties

Short-lived jets provide new experimental data

Z-pinch machines enable controlled jet simulations

Abstract

Jets and outflows produced during star-formation are observed on many scales: from the "micro-jets" extending a few hundred Astronomical Units to the "super-jets" propagating to parsecs distances. Recently, a new "class" of short-lived (hundreds of nano-seconds) centimetre-long jets has emerged in the laboratory as a complementary tool to study these complex astrophysical flows. Here I will discuss and review the recent work done on "simulating" protostellar jets in the laboratory using z-pinch machines.