Experimental Confirmation of Kolmogorov-Type Turbulent Scaling in a High-β Magnetically Screened Plasma

We report the experimental confirmation of Kolmogorov-like turbulent scaling in a magnetically screened high-β plasma generated in the Large Volume Plasma Device - Upgrade (LVPD-U). The experiment employs a filament-driven DC discharge in argon gas with a transverse magnetic field (20 ≤ B_EEF ≤ 200 G) imposed via an Electron Energy Filter (EEF). Fluctuating plasma parameters—namely ion saturation current (I_sat) and floating potential (V_f ) and magnetic fluctuations are measured using radially positioned Langmuir probes and B-dot probes at multiple locations in the downstream region. The acquired signals, sampled at 1 MS/s over a 50 ms window, are analyzed through power spectral density (PSD) estimation using smoothed FFT techniques. A clear inertial range emerges in both density and potential fluctuation spectra, exhibiting a spectral slope consistent with the Kolmogorov k ^−5/3 law for fluid-like turbulence. This result affirms the presence of a self-similar energy cascade even in low-temperature, magnetically structured plasmas and strengthens the universality of turbulence scaling across different plasma regimes. Future work will explore intermittency effects, scale-dependent anisotropy, and estimates of turbulent Reynolds numbers in such laboratory systems.