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Updated: May 24, 2026

Investigation of Early Plasma Evolution Induced by Ultrashort Laser Pulses
Published on: July 2, 2012
Bow shock formation in a complex plasma
Y Saitou1, Y Nakamura, T Kamimura
1Faculty of Engineering, Utsunomiya University, Utsunomiya, Japan.
Abstract:
A bow shock is observed in a two-dimensional supersonic flow of charged microparticles in a complex plasma. A thin conducting needle is used to make a potential barrier as an obstacle for the particle flow in the complex plasma. The flow is generated and the flow velocity is controlled by changing a tilt angle of the device under the gravitational force. A void, microparticle-free region, is formed around the potential barrier surrounding the obstacle. The flow is bent around the leading edge of the void and forms an arcuate structure when the flow is supersonic. The structure is characterized by the bow shock as confirmed by a polytropic hydrodynamic theory as well as numerical simulation.
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