Alfv\'{e}n wave Measurements in HelCat at UNM

Neutral damping of Alfv\'{e}n waves has been theorized to be partially responsible for the heating of the sun's corona. As such, more research is needed to better understand the relationship between Alfv\'{e}n waves and ion and neutral density. This paper describes one method to launch and observe Alfv\'{e}n waves in a high-density Argon plasma. The Alfv\'{e}n waves are launched with a commercial inductor (emitter) and detected with a hand wound B-dot coil. Construction of the emitter, detector and amplifier circuit is described. The Argon plasma is created using the helicon source on HelCat, a linear plasma device at the University of New Mexico. HelCat is a 4 meter long, 50 cm diameter machine with a helicon source on one end and hot cathode source on the other. Initial data collected indicating the presence of Alfv\'{e}n waves in Argon plasma is presented. Neutral density will be adjusted by pre-ionizing the gas with the cathode and/or an external UV lamp.