Magnetically Driven Jet Studies on the Big Red Ball

Magnetically driven jets are commonly observed originating from active galactic nuclei. These jets are launched and collimated in regions much smaller than the current resolution limits of observations, so the details of this process remain elusive. We are developing experiments on the Big Red Ball (BRB) at the Wisconsin Plasma Physics Laboratory (WiPPL) to explore propagation dynamics and stability of magnetically driven jets. Such experiments would differ from the previous studies in that the fast-moving jets will be propagating in a pressurized plasma background (vs vacuum). Extensive prior theoretical and numerical studies suggest this background pressure will markedly impact the jet propagation. Our work will focus on studying the shock and precursors formed between the magnetized jet and the unmagnetized background plasma and on how the development of the kink instability could depend on the strength of the background pressure. We will characterize the jet condition via temporally and spatially resolved diagnostic measurements of the magnetic field strength, electron and ion densities, temperatures, and velocities. The experiments will be guided by and interpreted with the aid of 3D MHD simulation and theoretical analysis carried out at LANL.