Magnetized Bow Shocks on OMEGA: Comparing Experimental Observations with Theory and Simulation

Experiments studying magnetized bow shocks at the OMEGA laser facility have yielded quantitative measurements of plasma parameters across a shock front using the spatially resolved optical Imaging Thomson Scattering diagnostic (ITS). The bow shock system consists of a relatively slow, low-density plasma flow impinging on the azimuthal magnetic field imposed by a current-carrying wire. We infer electron number density and temperature from the Thomson scattered spectra, from which we determine the shock standoff distance. The data collected for two different levels of current in the wire suggests that the shock exists farther from the wire for stronger magnetic fields. We compare the inferred shock standoff distances to analytical models and to MHD simulations using the FLASH code.