The UW Plasma Physics Group

Clint Sprott, Paul Terry, Ellen Zweibel, Stas Boldyrev, Dalton Schnack, Cary Forest, Stewart Prager

Presented to

Introductory Seminar for New Graduate Students

on September 6, 2007

Plasma Physics What is a Plasma?

Ionized gas (kT > a few eV) The fourth state of matter 99% of the universe

History of Plasma Physics 1920’s - Langmuir (vacuum tubes) 1930’s - Appleton (ionosphere) 1950’s - Nuclear Fusion 1960’s - Solar wind, stellar interiors 1980’s - Industrial applications

Wisconsin Plasma Physics Program Began in 1962 by Donald W. Kerst Present Physics Faculty

Clint Sprott (computational dynamics) Paul Terry (theory) Ellen Zweibel - joint with Astronomy (theory) Stas Boldyrev (theory) Dalton Schnack – part-time (computational) Cary Forest (experimental) Stewart Prager (experimental)

Plasma Research in other UW Departments Stellarator/Torsatron (ECE) Spherical Tokamak (EP) Fusion Technology Institute (EP) Plasma Theory & Computation (EP) Plasma Processing (EP)

Plasma Physics Group Composition

7 faculty 11 scientists 9 postdocs 28 graduate students 27 support staff + frequent and long-term visitors ==> ~ 80 people total

Funding (~$8M year) ~80 Ph.D. graduates over 40 years

50% at National Labs 25% at Universities 25% in Industry

http://plasma.physics.wisc.edu/

Nuclear Fusion D + T 4He (3.5 MeV) + n (14 MeV)

“Inexhaustible” Source of Energy

D2 in oceans will last 3 x 108 years

1 gal H2) = 1/8 g D2 = 300 gal gasoline

Must contain DT plasma @ kT > 10 keV

for n > 1020 sec/m3 (Coulomb barrier)

Scientific Feasibility Essentially Proven

Much Work Remains

Physics

Technology

What to do if Interested Come around and get Acquainted Take Plasma Courses

525 introduction 526 plasma lab (EP) 527 confinement devices 528 plasma processing 724 waves & instabilities 725 plasma kinetic theory 726 magnetohydrodynamics

Plasma Seminar: 12:05 Mon (1227 Engr) Group Meeting: 4:00 Thurs (5280 Ch) Summer Jobs Available Pass Qualifiers

Paul Terry

Turbulence in fusion and astrophysics

Interests (organizing principles):

Physics of coherent structure formation in turbulence

Role of symmetry-breaking waves

Role of strongly inhomogeneous background

(e.g., shear flow)

Applications:

Transport in fusion plasmas

Interstellar medium

Ellen Zweibel

Stas Boldyrev

Dalton SchnackComputational Physics

Fluid models of plasmas

Plasmas in astrophysics

Research Interests Magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) Extended MHD (2-fluid/FLR effects) Fluid models for tokamak plasmas (closures) Plasma relaxation/dynamo Large scale computations for fluid plasmas MHD/RF interactions Anomalous angular momentum transport in

magnetized plasmas Structure and heating of the solar corona Accretion disk coronae

Cary Forest

Stewart Prager