title: Design and construction of Keda Space Plasma Experiment (KSPEX) for the investigation of the boundary layer processes of ionospheric depletions.
abstract: In this work, the design and construction of the Keda Space Plasma EXperiment (KSPEX), which aims to study the boundary layer processes of ionospheric depletions, are described in detail. The device is composed of three stainless-steel sections: two source chambers at both ends and an experimental chamber in the center. KSPEX is a steady state experimental device, in which hot filament arrays are used to produce plasmas in the two sources. A Macor-mesh design is adopted to adjust the plasma density and potential difference between the two plasmas, which creates a boundary layer with a controllable electron density gradient and inhomogeneous radial electric field. In addition, attachment chemicals can be released into the plasmas through a tailor-made needle valve which leads to the generation of negative ions plasmas. Ionospheric depletions can be modeled and simulated using KSPEX, and many micro-physical processes of the formation and evolution of an ionospheric depletion can be experimentally studied.
authors: CAS Key Laboratory of Geospace Environment, School of Earth and Space Science, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China.
authors: Yu
authors: Y
authors: Liu
authors: CAS Key Laboratory of Geospace Environment, Modern Physics Department, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China.
authors: Zhongkai
authors: Z
authors: Zhang
authors: CAS Key Laboratory of Geospace Environment, School of Earth and Space Science, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China.
authors: Jiuhou
authors: J
authors: Lei
authors: CAS Key Laboratory of Geospace Environment, Modern Physics Department, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China.
authors: Jinxiang
authors: J
authors: Cao
authors: CAS Key Laboratory of Geospace Environment, Modern Physics Department, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China.
authors: Pengcheng
authors: P
authors: Yu
authors: CAS Key Laboratory of Geospace Environment, Modern Physics Department, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China.
authors: Xiao
authors: X
authors: Zhang
authors: CAS Key Laboratory of Geospace Environment, Modern Physics Department, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China.
authors: Liang
authors: L
authors: Xu
authors: CAS Key Laboratory of Geospace Environment, Modern Physics Department, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China.
authors: Yaodong
authors: Y
authors: Zhao