Propagation of Alfven waves in the WVU HELIX device

Alfvén waves are low frequency, long wavelength electromagnetic waves commonly found in space plasmas. As these waves typically have wavelengths on the order of kilometers, generating Alfvén waves in the lab is quite difficult. At the appropriate plasma parameters, (e.g., high density and weak applied magnetic field strength), the wavelength of the Alfvén wave will be small enough to fit into a reasonably sized experimental device. Here it will be shown that Alfvén waves have been successfully propagated in the HELIX device in argon and helium plasmas.