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The CHIMERAS project: design framework for the Collisionless HIgh-beta Magnetized Experiment Researching Astrophysical Systems

Dorfman, Seth [Space Science Institute, Boulder, CO (United States); University of California, Los Angeles, CA (United States)] (ORCID:0000000159559552)·Bose, Sayak [Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL), Princeton, NJ (United States); Princeton University, NJ (United States)] (ORCID:0000000180939322)·Lichko, Emily [University of Chicago, IL (United States); Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, DC (United States)] (ORCID:0000000319458460)·Abler, Mel [Space Science Institute, Boulder, CO (United States); University of California, Los Angeles, CA (United States)] (ORCID:0000000325288752)·Juno, James [Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL), Princeton, NJ (United States)] (ORCID:000000016835273X)·TenBarge, Jason [Princeton University, NJ (United States)] (ORCID:000000030143951X)·Zhang, Yang [Princeton University, NJ (United States); University Corporation for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, CO (United States)] (ORCID:0000000241689225)·Thakur, Saikat Chakraborty [Auburn University, AL (United States)] (ORCID:0000000284222705)·Cartagena-Sanchez, Carlos [Beloit College, Beloit, WI (United States); University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United States)] (ORCID:0000000204861292)·Tatum, Peter [University of Colorado, Boulder, CO (United States)]·Scime, Earl [West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV (United States)] (ORCID:000000034128492X)·Joshi, Garima [University of California, Los Angeles, CA (United States)] (ORCID:0000000301248385)·Greess, Samuel [Queen Mary University of London (United Kingdom)] (ORCID:000000023107258X)·Kuchta, Cameron [University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United States)] (ORCID:0000000150284898)
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Abstract

From the near-Earth solar wind to the intracluster medium of galaxy clusters, collisionless, high-beta, magnetized plasmas pervade our universe. Energy and momentum transport from large-scale fields and flows to small-scale motions of plasma particles is ubiquitous in these systems, but a full picture of the underlying physical mechanisms remains elusive. The transfer is often mediated by a turbulent cascade of Alfvénic fluctuations as well as a variety of kinetic instabilities; these processes tend to be multi-scale and/or multi-dimensional, which makes them difficult to study using spacecraft missions and numerical simulations alone. Meanwhile, existing laboratory devices struggle to produce the collisionless, high ion beta (β i ≳ 1), magnetized plasmas across the range of scales necessary to address these problems. As envisioned in recent community planning documents, it is therefore important to build a next generation laboratory facility to create a β i ≳ 1, collisionless, magnetized plasma in the laboratory for the first time. A working group has been formed and is actively defining the necessary technical requirements to move the facility towards a construction-ready state. Recent progress includes the development of target parameters and diagnostic requirements as well as the identification of a need for source-target device geometry. As the working group is already leading to new synergies across the community, we anticipate a broad community of users funded by a variety of federal agencies (including National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Department of Energy and National Science Foundation) to make copious use of the future facility.

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Dorfman, Seth [Space Science Institute, Boulder, CO (United States); University of California, Los Angeles, CA (United States)] (ORCID:0000000159559552), Bose, Sayak [Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL), Princeton, NJ (United States); Princeton University, NJ (United States)] (ORCID:0000000180939322), Lichko, Emily [University of Chicago, IL (United States); Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, DC (United States)] (ORCID:0000000319458460), Abler, Mel [Space Science Institute, Boulder, CO (United States); University of California, Los Angeles, CA (United States)] (ORCID:0000000325288752), Juno, James [Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL), Princeton, NJ (United States)] (ORCID:000000016835273X), TenBarge, Jason [Princeton University, NJ (United States)] (ORCID:000000030143951X), Zhang, Yang [Princeton University, NJ (United States); University Corporation for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, CO (United States)] (ORCID:0000000241689225), Thakur, Saikat Chakraborty [Auburn University, AL (United States)] (ORCID:0000000284222705), Cartagena-Sanchez, Carlos [Beloit College, Beloit, WI (United States); University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United States)] (ORCID:0000000204861292), Tatum, Peter [University of Colorado, Boulder, CO (United States)], Scime, Earl [West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV (United States)] (ORCID:000000034128492X), Joshi, Garima [University of California, Los Angeles, CA (United States)] (ORCID:0000000301248385), Greess, Samuel [Queen Mary University of London (United Kingdom)] (ORCID:000000023107258X), Kuchta, Cameron [University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United States)] (ORCID:0000000150284898). 2025-08-08. The CHIMERAS project: design framework for the Collisionless HIgh-beta Magnetized Experiment Researching Astrophysical Systems. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0022377825100469

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