The Wisconsin Plasma Astrophysics Laboratory
C.B. Forest, K. Flanagan, M. Brookhart, C.M. Cooper, M. Clark, V., Desangles, J. Egedal, D. Endrizzi, M. Miesch, I.V. Khalzov, H. Li, J., Milhone, M. Nornberg, J. Olson, E. Peterson, F. Roesler, A. Schekochihin, O., Schmitz, R. Siller, A. Spitkovsky, A. Stemo, J. Wallace
TL;DR
WiPAL is a versatile plasma physics laboratory that enables experiments simulating various astrophysical phenomena using a large, magnetically confined plasma in spherical geometry.
Contribution
This paper introduces WiPAL, a new experimental facility that allows detailed study of astrophysical plasma processes in controlled laboratory conditions.
Findings
Successful confinement of large plasma volume
Demonstration of experiments on magnetic reconnection and dynamos
Potential for diverse astrophysical plasma studies
Abstract
The Wisconsin Plasma Astrophysics Laboratory (WiPAL) is a flexible user facility designed to study a range of astrophysically relevant plasma processes as well as novel geometries that mimic astrophysical systems. A multi-cusp magnetic bucket constructed from strong samarium cobalt permanent magnets now confines a 10 m, fully ionized, magnetic-field free plasma in a spherical geometry. Plasma parameters of to eV and to cm provide an ideal testbed for a range of astrophysical experiments including self-exciting dynamos, collisionless magnetic reconnection, jet stability, stellar winds, and more. This article describes the capabilities of WiPAL along with several experiments, in both operating and planning stages, that illustrate the range of possibilities for future users.
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