Mega-Gauss turbulence due to seeded composition fluctuations in dense plasma, and electron beam scattering

Fine scale variations in the chemical composition of a collision-dominated plasma give rise to corresponding spatial fluctuations in the electron density, which persist until being dispersed by diffusive or turbulent mixing. In the presence of a steep background temperature gradient these density fluctuations are expected to give rise to magnetic field fluctuations that reach the mega-Gauss range for temperatures of about a kilovolt. Using a simplified static plasma model, a spectrum is derived for the field fluctuations, together with a diffusion operator for the enhanced scattering of energetic particles in such a plasma. This phenomenon may be of interest in the design of targets for electron-beam driven fusion.