Simulation of dynamics of rotating weakly ionized plasmas

In this paper, we present a simulation study on the generation of rotating gas in a cylindrical chamber, which contains weakly ionized gas with charge to neutral density ratio ( 10(-6)-10(-3)). In this chamber, a radial current component of current density, J(r), is driven by an external electric potential difference between the inner and the outer radial boundaries, and a static magnetic field B-0 is imposed in the axial direction. The charged particles are accelerated in the azimuthal direction by the Lorentz force J(r) x B-0. The neutrals then gain an azimuthal acceleration through ion-neutral collisions. The centrifugal force increases as the azimuthal speed increases. In the simulation, a strong centrifugal acceleration of 10(11) m/s(2) is achieved with an azimuthal speed of 10(5) m/s. A density gradient is developed to balance the centrifugal force, and the density at the outer radial boundary can reach 10(25)-10(26) m(-3).