A Condensed State in a System of Stored and Cooled Ions

Condensation phenomena may be observed within the cooled ion beams contained in heavy-ion storage rings. Their properties have been investigated with the techniques of molecular dynamics. The results indicate interesting possibilities - crystallization would occur in cylindrical shells with two-dimensional order in each shell, yet an overall approximate bcc pattern in the correlation function. Similar results are seen in a spherical geometry that may crudely approximate a cold plasma in a Penning trap.