The results of laboratory experiments at the U ni versity of California at Irvine are presented in which multidimensional ion velocity distributions in the presence of radio-frequency (RF) waves and a spatially divergent external magnetic field are observed. A plasma volume is subjected to either local or nonlocal electrostatic turbulence, which in tum is responsible for accelerating the ions transverse to the confining magnetic field. The ions flow away from the source of turbulence in a

more »

... lly decreasing magnetic field, where the /L VB force and magnetic-moment conservation work to distort the heated distribution. Laser-induced-fluorescence (LIF) signals, measured downstream from the plasma source with the aid of optical tomography techniques, reveal substantial ion heating and conic formation.