Generation of a Reversed-Field Configuration without an Applied Magnetic Field

Abstract

A rotating relativistic electron beam, charge but not current neutralized and exceeding the Alfvén limit, has been propagated down a closed metal tube in the absence of an external guide field. The radial equilibrium is determined by the self-fields of the beam and the induced wall currents. The 100-nsec duration beam, upon leaving the system, induces plasma currents that maintain a field-reversed configuration for 18 μsec.