Laboratory evidence of the nonresonant streaming instability in the formation of quasiparallel collisionless shocks at high Alfvénic Mach number

Phys Rev E. 2024 Sep;110(3):L033201. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevE.110.L033201.

Abstract

We present an experimental investigation of the formation stage of a collisionless shock when the flow velocity is aligned with an ambient magnetic field utilizing laser-driven, super-Alfvénic plasma flows. As the flows interact, electromagnetic streaming instabilities develop. Proton deflectometry is used to visualize these electromagnetic fluctuations indicating the development of the ion-Weibel instability and the nonresonant instability. Hybrid simulations also show growth of the nonresonant instability and suggest that it provides an efficient source of dissipation for a shock.