A new method to determine ion temperatures in magnetized plasmas by means of an electrical probe

The particle flow to a probe in a magnetized plasma is anisotropic. Because of this effect a probe pin generates a shadow in the plasma. From the measurement of the density profile of this shadow the ion temperature can be inferred for specified plasma conditions by comparison with results from Monte Carlo calculations. The probe presheath and sheath are accounted for in the calculations only by use of the Bohm criterion. This implies that the calculated results of the present article pertain strictly only for plasmas with an ion temperature that is large compared to the electron temperature, although the principle of the method is not restricted to these temperature ratios. The space resolution of the measurement in the direction perpendicular to the magnetic field is a few times the ion gyro radius and the time resolution is