Dynamical study and control of drift waves in a magnetized laboratory plasma

The various dynamical regimes of collisional drift waves in a magnetized plasma column are experimentally studied. These unstable low-frequency electrostatic waves are related with strong modulations of the ion and electron density. The angular velocity of the rotating plasma column is the control parameter of the dynamics: regular, chaotic and turbulent regimes are obtained. The spatial extension of the system allows for the occurrence of spatiotemporal chaos. The time-delay auto-synchronization method of controlling chaos K. Pyragas, Phys. Lett. A 170, 421 (1992)] though purely temporal is successfully applied. A numerical study using coupled nonlinear oscillators exhibiting chaos is compared to the experimental results. The control method is tested on this model.