Magnetic reconnection in plasma under inertial confinement fusion conditions driven by heat flux effects in OHM'S law

Abstract

Summary form only given. In the interaction of high power laser beams with solid density plasma, there are a number of generating mechanisms that result in very strong magnetic fields. Such fields can subsequently inhibit or redirect energy transport. Here, we present 2D numerical modeling of near critical density plasma using a fully implicit Vlasov-Fokker-Planck code, IMPACTA, which includes self-consistent magnetic fields as well as anisotropic electron pressure terms in the expansion of the distribution function. Magnetic field generation and advection by different mechanisms are studied in the context of heating by multiple laser spots, between which reconnection of magnetic field lines may occur. In particular, we compare the relative importance of Hall, resistivity, and heat flux effects in the magnetic field dynamics of MG strength, oppositely aligned magnetic fields interacting in a plasma under conditions relevant to the wall of a hohlraum. We show that reconnection does indeed occur and furthermore, under such conditions, the reconnection rate is moderated by the heat flow rather than the Alfvenic flows in the system.