Conceptual design of the tail research experiment at the Space Plasma Environment Research Facility(SPERF-TREX)

The Space Plasma Environment Research Facility(SPERF)for ground simulation of the space plasma environment is a key component of the Space Environment Simulation Research Infrastructure(SESRI),a major national science and technology infrastructure for fundamental research.It is designed to investigate outstanding issues in the space plasma environment,such as energetic particle acceleration,transport,and interaction with electromagnetic waves,as well as magnetic reconnection processes,in magnetospheric plasmas.The Tail-Research EXperiment(TREX)is part of the SPERF for laboratory studies of space physics relevant to magnetic reconnection,dipolarization and hydromagnetic wave excitation in the magnetotail.SPERFTREX is designed to carry out three types of experiments:the tail plasmoid for magnetic reconnection,dipolarization front formation,and magnetohydrodynamic waves excited by highspeed plasma jets.In this paper,the scientific goals and three scenarios of SPERF-TREX for typical processes in space plasmas are presented,and experimental plans for SPERF-TREX are also reviewed,together with the plasma sources applied to generate the plasma with the desired parameters and various magnetic configurations.

Three-dimensional magnetic reconnection in complex multiple X-point configurations in an ancient solar-lunar terrestrial system

Magnetic reconnection processes in three-dimensional(3D)complex field configurations have been investigated in different magneto-plasma systems in space,laboratory,and astrophysical systems.Two-dimensional(2D)features of magnetic reconnection have been well developed and applied successfully to systems with symmetrical property,such as toroidal fusion plasmas and laboratory experiments with an axial symmetry.But in asymmetric systems,the 3D features are inevitably different from those in the 2D case.Magnetic reconnection structures in multiple celestial body systems,particularly star-planet-Moon systems,bring fresh insights to the understanding of the 3D geometry of reconnection.Thus,we take magnetic reconnection in an ancient solar-lunar terrestrial magneto-plasma system as an example by using its crucial parameters approximately estimated already and also some specific applications in pathways for energy and matter transports among Earth,ancient Moon,and the interplanetary magnetic field(IMF).Then,magnetic reconnection of the ancient lunar-terrestrial magnetospheres with the IMF is investigated numerically in this work.In a 3D simulation for the Earth-Moon-IMF system,topological features of complex magnetic reconnection configurations and dynamical characteristics of magnetic reconnection processes are studied.It is found that a coupled lunar-terrestrial magnetosphere is formed,and under various IMF orientations,multiple X-points emerge at distinct locations,showing three typical magnetic reconnection structures in such a geometry,i.e.,the X-line,the triple current sheets,and the A-B null pairs.The results can conduce to further understanding of reconnection physics in 3D for plasmas in complex magnetic configurations,and also a possible mechanism for energy and matters transport in evolutions of similar astrophysical systems.

240 kJ模块化能库型脉冲放电电源研制

空间等离子体环境模拟与研究装置用于在地面模拟空间磁场和等离子体环境,需要在3.5μH电感、0.8 mΩ电阻的环向场线圈负载上产生前沿130μs、降流时间不大于1600μs、峰值260 kA的脉冲电流,因此设计了一套模块化的电容器型放电电源。针对相对较小电感的负载,根据设计要求的放电波形和开关组件通流能力,考虑负载短路故障的情形,给出了保护电感、优化的模块数量等回路参数计算方法。进一步采用传输电缆作为能量传输,同时将电缆寄生电感作为保护电感的方案,研制了一套由4个模块组成的放电电源。研究结果表明,本文给出的电路理论计算结果与设计要求一致,放电试验进一步证明电源设计满足设计放电波形要求。

Conceptual design of the three-dimensional magnetic field configuration relevant to the magnetopause reconnection in the SPERF

A new ground-based expenmental device,the Space Plasma Environment Research Facility（SPERF）,is being designed at Harbin Institute of Technology in China,with Asymmetric REconnection eXperiment-3 Dimensional（AREX-3D） as one of the experimental components to study the asymmetric reconnection dynamics relevant to the interaction between the interplanetary and magnetospheric plasmas.The asymmetry in the designed magnetic reconnection process not only refers to the distinct plasma parameters designed for the two upstream regions across the current sheet,but also refers to the inhomogeneity in the direction along the current sheet resulting from the designed 3D magnetic field geometry.These two asymmetries are fundamental features of the reconnection process at the Earth＇s magnetopause.In experiment,the reconnection process is driven by a set of flux cores through coil-currentramp-up from the ＇magnetosheath-side＇ to interact with a dipole magnetic field generated by the Dipole Research Experiment（DREX） coil on the ＇magnetosphere-side＇.The AREX-3D will be able to investigate a range of important reconnection issues in 3D magnetic field geometry that is relevant to the Earth＇s magnetopause.A wide range of plasma parameters can be achieved through inductive plasma generation with flux cores on the ＇magnetosheath-side＇ and electron cyclotron resonance（ECR） with microwave sources on the ＇magnetosphere-side＇,e.g.high（low）plasma density at experimental magnetosheath（dipole） side.Different reconnection regimes and geometries can be produced by adjusting plasma parameters and coil setups as well as coil current waveforms.The three-dimensional magnetic field configurations in the SPERF relevant to the dayside magnetopause reconnection are discussed in detail.

Nonlinear evolution and secondary island formation of the double tearing mode in a hybrid simulation

Double tearing modes(DTMs),induced by double current sheet configurations or two neighboring rational surfaces with the same safety factor in tokamaks,are widely observed in solar,space,and fusion plasmas.In this paper,the evolution of DTMs without a guide field is investigated numerically using a hybrid model(electron fluid+ion PIC).The overall evolution processes of DTMs are qualitatively consistent with previous works using other models.The particle dynamics during the evolution of DTMs is analyzed in detail.Behaviors of ions and electrons present different characteristics around the reconnection region which gives rise to Hall effects producing the out-of-plane quadrupole magnetic field.In the explosive reconnection process with interactions between two DTMs islands,the asymmetric drive and the thin current layer feature lead to the emergence of secondary magnetic islands which develop with the late evolution of the DTMs.

Development of plasma sources for Dipole Research EXperiment(DREX)

Dipole Research EXperiment（DREX） is a new terrella device as part of the Space Plasma Environment Research Facility（SPERF） for laboratory studies of space physics relevant to the inner magnetospheric plasmas. Adequate plasma sources are very important for DREX to achieve its scientific goals. According to different research requirements, there are two density regimes for DREX. The low density regime will be achieved by an electron cyclotron resonance（ECR） system for the ‘whistler/chorus＇ wave investigation, while the high density regime will be achieved by biased cold cathode discharge for the desired ‘Alfvén＇ wave study. The parameters of ‘whistler/chorus＇ waves and ‘Alfvén＇ waves are determined by the scaling law between space and laboratory plasmas in the current device. In this paper, the initial design of these two plasma sources for DREX is described. Focus is placed on the chosen frequency and operation mode of the ECR system which will produce relatively low density ‘artificial radiation belt＇ plasmas and the seed electrons, followed by the design of biased cold cathode discharge to generate plasma with high density.