Hydrodynamic and magnetically driven jets on the MAGPIE generator

Summary form only given. The formation of highly supersonic, radiatively cooled plasma jets with applications to laboratory astrophysics has been an active area of research on the MAGPIE generator. Two experimental arrangements, radial wire arrays
¹
and radial foils
²
, can produce plasma flows with similar dimensionless numbers to those encountered in protostellar jets. In radial wire arrays, a magnetically driven jet on the axis of a cavity evolves into a “clumpy” outflow due to the formation of current-driven instabilities, which could be relevant to the spatial and temporal variability of features observed in protostellar jets. In radial foils, a hydrodynamic jet interacts with an argon ambient injected above the foil using a supersonic gas nozzle. The results are characterized by the formation of several shock features, opening the possibility of studying jet-ambient interactions in the laboratory. Experimental results from different diagnostics including laser probing and self-emission of protons will be presented. Theses results will be compared with first 3-D MHD simulations using the Gorgon code.