Experimental Study of Planar Langmuir Probe Characteristics in Electron Current‐Carrying Magnetized Plasma

Abstract Experimental study of planar Langmuir probe characteristics in a magnetized plasma with an electron current along the direction of the magnetic field shows that the usual procedure for determination of the electron temperature and plasma density, which is applicable in a current‐free magnetized plasma, gives erroneous results for these plasma parameters. When this procedure is applied on the characteristics measured at two opposite orientations of the probe collecting surface with respect to the direction of the electron drift, different values of the electron temperature are obtained. These virtual electron temperatures and corresponding plasma densities calculated from the measured ion saturation currents are higher and/or smaller than the exact local electron temperature and plasma density. Calculation of particular averages of these quantities is proposed as a possible way to obtain correct results for the local electron temperature and plasma density. These averages are used in the approximate evaluation of the electron drift velocity from the electron saturation currents measured at the two orientations of the probe collecting surface.