Development of flute modes on expanding plasma clouds

Structuring that results from plasma streaming at sub-Alfvénic speeds across an external magnetic field is considered. Previously, it has been proposed the lower hybrid drift instability enhanced by the deceleration of the plasma by the field produces the flute modes observed on the surface of expanding laser produced plasmas and the AMPTE magnetotail releases [Eos (Trans) 63, 843 (1982)]. An appropriate dispersion equation to describe the properties of the unstable waves has been derived and particle simulations carried out to show the growth and evolution of the instability. The salient features of this earlier work are reviewed here, and then additions and refinements to the theory and simulations are described. In particular, the scaling of the wave properties with the ratio of the ion gyroradius to the magnetic confinement radius is discussed and the nonlinear evolution of the instability is investigated more thoroughly. The consequences of these results, both for the laser experiments and for AMPTE, are also considered. To this end, a comparison of the linear and nonlinear properties of the waves observed in the simulations with those seen in the experiments is carried out. While there is considerable discrepancy between the observed and predicted wavelengths of the modes, the effects considered here are in the direction of reducing the disagreement.