Overview of the Basic Plasma Science Facility

Abstract:

The Basic Plasma Science Facility (BaPSF) at UCLA is a US national user

facility for studies of fundamental processes in magnetized plasmas.

The centerpiece of the facility is the Large Plasma Device (LAPD), a 20m

long, magnetized linear plasma device. This LAPD has been utilized to study a number of

fundamental processes, including: dispersion and damping of kinetic

and inertial Alfv\'{e}n waves, flux ropes and magnetic reconnection,

three-wave interactions and parametric instabilities of Alfv\'{e}n

waves, turbulence and transport and interactions of energetic ions

and electrons with plasma waves. An overview of research performed

using BaPSF will be provided, focusing on research relevant to the physics of the radiation belts.