Numerical investigation of the theta pinch in intrinsic indiumantimonide

The electron-hole plasma in intrinsic InSb at 300 K can be compressed by electric and magnetic fields. In the theta-pinch configuration one applies, by a capacitor discharge over a one-winding coil around the sample, a magnetic field (0, 0,B _z), which induces an electric field (0,E _φ, 0); both fields cause the ambipolar motion (v _r, 0, 0) of the plasma. We describe the electron-hole plasma by means of a magnetohydrodynamical two-fluid model. The resulting system of differential equations is solved numerically under the assumptions of scalar hydrodynamic pressure and field-independent mobilities. The influence of the plasma properties on the theta pinch is studied as well as the dependence on the experimental conditions like radius of the sample, maximum value and risetime of the magnetic field.