Oscillating two-stream instability of laser wakefield-driven plasma wave

The laser wakefield-driven plasma wave in a low-density plasma is seen to be susceptible to the oscillating two-stream instability (OTSI). The plasma wave couples to two short wavelength plasma wave sidebands. The pump plasma wave and sidebands exert a ponderomotive force on the electrons driving a low-frequency quasimode. The electron density perturbation associated with this mode couples with the pump-driven electron oscillatory velocity to produce nonlinear currents driving the sidebands. At large pump amplitude, the instability grows faster than the ion plasma frequency and ions do not play a significant role. The growth rate of the quasimode, at large pump amplitude scales faster than linear. The growth rate is maximum for an optimum wave number of the quasimode and also increases with pump amplitude. Nonlocal effects, however reduce the growth rate by about half.     

低密等离子体通道中的非共振激光直接加速

在低密等离子体通道中, 横向有质动力可以有效调制电子的横向振荡过程. 一方面, 横向有质动力可以向外推动电子, 增大电子横向振荡振幅, 减小失相率, 使电子获得能量增益; 另一方面, 横向有质动力也可以通过对失相率的非线性调制来降低失相率, 在电子横向振荡振幅很小的情况下导致激光直接加速. 横向有质动力调制的大小由等离子体密度、激光强度和束宽共同决定. 三维模型结果也证实可以通过参数放大实现激光直接加速, 弥补了准二维模型的局限性.     

Experimental Evidence of Parametric Instabilities in an Unmagnetized Plasma Subjected to a Strong H.F. Electric Field

Experimental evidence of parametric excitation, by an intense external H.F. field, of an electron surface mode and an ion wave is presented. The pumping electromagnetic energy density is equal to or slightly larger than the thermal energy density of the electrons. The value of f_pc/f₀ (electron plasma frequency/external field frequency) is that for an electron surface wave. Depending on the pressure and field intensity, this decay instability can lead to three types of low frequency oscillations, with frequencies close to the ion plasma frequency. Two of these are described by Aliev and Silin's intense field theory: one is the volume ion plasma oscillation and the other a surface ion plasma oscillation. The third corresponds to no known ion eigenmode. Several other features of the theory by Aliev and co-workers are also confirmed experimentally, such as the harmonic excitation of the instability (nf₀ ≈ f_pe/√2, where n is an integer), the instability amplitude as a function of f_pe/f₀ (above threshold conditions), the value of the mismatch parameter as a function of field strength and ion mass, and the existence of a fine structure corresponding to the symmetric and antisymmetric electron surface oscillations. Even at high pump field strengths, the decay products are nearly monochromatic i.e. the plasma does not become turbulent.     

Decay instability in a plasma channel

Near the critical layer, a large-amplitude laser beam creates a transverse plasma channel due to the ponderomotive force. The axis of the channel is normal to the ambient density gradient. Inside the channel, the laser beam decays into counter-propagating ion acoustic and Langmuir waves. A nonlocal theory of the process is developed for a parabolic density profile. The growth rate of the instability is significantly reduced due to the nonlocal effects     

Resonant decay of a Langmuir wave in the presence of dust grains in a cylindrical plasma

The resonant parametric decay of a Langmuir wave into a backward propagating Langmuir wave and an ion acoustic (IA) wave is studied in a cylindrical dusty plasma. The analysis shows that the frequency of the IA mode decreases with the parameter δ_c (where δ_c is the ratio of the ion density to the electron density) for negatively charged dust grains. The growth rate of the resonance decay instability (RDI) and the threshold required for its onset also decrease with δ_c and are strongly dependent on the electron to ion temperature ratio for both positively and negatively charged dust grains. The results obtained also illustrate the dependence of the threshold of the resonance decay instability (μ_th) on the plasma cylinder radius.     

Hydrodynamic analysis of electrostatic counter-streaming instability in a spin-polarized electron–positron–ion plasma

In this study, we present linear analysis of electrostatic counter-streaming instability in spin-polarized electron–positron–ion (e-p-i) plasma. With the aid of the separate spin evolution-quantum hydrodynamic (SSE-QHD) model, we derive the dispersion relation of counter-streaming instability. We numerically solve the dispersion and find four wave solutions: Langmuir wave, positron acoustic mode, and two electron and positron spin-dependent waves. It is noted that coupling of streaming and spin effects excites Langmuir instability and positron acoustic mode instability. However, in the absence of spin effect, only Langmuir instability will survive in e-p-i plasma. We have also discussed the effects of positron concentration, streaming speed, and spin polarization on the real frequency of waves and the growth rate. The present study may be helpful for understanding longitudinal wave propagation and instabilities in dense magnetized environments.     

Nonlinear-Ion-Acoustic-Wave Instability, Threshold, Half Width of Trapped Region and Transition Region

Nonlinear Landau damping of ion acoustic wave (IAW) is one of the most important phenomena in the ionosphere and in space and laboratory plasma as well. The instability growth rate of the IAW with electron drift, the amplitude threshold for exciting the nonlinear effects, the half widths of the trapped region with the trapped electrons are studied experimentally. Under the experimental conditions, it is shown that there is a frequency range of 140--160 kHz, within which the growth rate has the largest value of about 6×10⁴--1.5×10⁵ s^-1. We obtain the transitional region width caused by collisions theoretically and experimentally, for the first time to our knowledge. The experimental results are in good agreement with the theoretical prediction.     

束—等离子体放电中低频等离子体波的非稳定性研究

本文采用非中性冷等离子体模型,研究了沿磁场入射的电子束和等离子体相互作用引起的低频等离子体波的非稳定性。计算表明,在束-等离子体放电情况下,振动频率和增长率都随电子束密度增加而增加,当束电流一定时,它们随l增加而略有增加。l=1时其频率数量级与离子迴旋频率相同。l≥3时,振动频率几乎不随k_z变化,其振动频率和增长率数量级与低混杂振荡频率相同,实质是低混杂漂移非稳定性。理论结果与实验一致。     

Stimulated brillouin scattering of electromagnetic ion cyclotron waves in a plasma

Using the fluid model for the nonlinear response of ions, we have studied the nonlinear scattering of an electromagnetic ion cyclotron wave off the ion acoustic wave in a plasma. The low frequency nonlinearity arises through the parallel ponderomotive force on ions and the high frequency nonlinearity arises through the nonlinear current density of ions. For a typical nonisothermal plasma (T _e/T _i∼10) the threshold for this instability in a uniform plasma is ∼1mW/cm². At power densities ≳10² W/cm², the growth rate for backscatter turns out to be ∼10⁴s⁻¹.     

Linear and Nonlinear Wavetransformation and Absorption in the Inhomogeneous Plasma Capacitor

The parametric decay process in inhomogeneous layers existing near the plasma boundaries or in front of antennas and probes in a plasma has been investigated. The linear enhancement of the pump field near ω = ω_p, the threshold fieldstrength, the wavenumber selection rules and the influence of spontaneous low frequency fluctuations are discussed in detail using a one-dimensional model of the inhomogeneous plasma capacitor. According to this model the instabilities appear in the layers with maximum linear transformation and (linear) absorption. In addition, a strong nonlinear part of absorption in the presence of the instability has been observed. The level of the spontaneous low frequency fluctuations influences strongly the spectrum of the parametrically excited ion waves. The experiments show a redistribution of the transferred ion acoustic wave energy over the whole wave continuum up to ω_pi, if a sufficient strong spontaneous fluctuation level exists in the plasma. It is impossible, however, to excite ion acoustic turbulence by the decay of the high frequency pump field under the present conditions. The conditions for the linear field enhancement are disturbed by the action of the ponderomotive forces changing the density profile near the critical point before reaching the strong pump amplitude being necessary for the excitation of a cascade of decay processes.     

Gradient Driven Azimuthal Ion Acoustic Waves

An instability of a magnetized plasma column in the frequency range has been identified as an ion acoustic one. The waves are azimuthally driven by the electron diamagnetic velocity due to the radial gradient of a fast electron tail. The strongest peaks in the frequency spectrum correspond to m = 6 or 8 wave lengths on one turn. This selection can be explained as an optimum value between increasing growth rate and the resonance disturbing phase mismatch at higher mode numbers.     

Excitation of ion acoustic waves at the difference frequency of two microwave beams in a semiconductor

This letter presents an investigation of the resonant excitation of the electrostatic ion acoustic wave at the difference frequency of two microwave beams in a semiconductor, viz., n-type InSb. The ponderomotive force at the difference frequency on electrons drives the ion acoustic wave at the difference frequency. The resonance conditions are satisfied over a wide range of semiconductor parameters. For typical plasma parameters of n-InSb and microwave beams of power densities 1 MW cm^?2, the power density of the excited ion acoustic wave is ≈ 1.76 kW cm^?2.     

Collisionless Damping of Geodesic Acoustic Mode in a Multi‐Ion Plasma with Superthermal Ions

The dispersion relation of geodesic acoustic mode is investigated in a multi‐ion toroidal plasma on the basis of linear gyrokinetic equations where ions are assumed to take a nonextensive distribution. It is found that the frequency of GAM becomes larger with the decrease of q. Consequently, GAM will damp more rapidly. The effective charge corresponding to the maximum damping rate is found to move towards unity as q decreases. As indicates that in a plasma with superthermal bulk ions, the influence of the impurity ion on the damping rate is weakened. (© 2015 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Ion‐Acoustic Waves Instability in a Three Components Magneto‐Plasma with Nonthermal Electrons

A theoretical investigation has been made on obliquely propagating ion‐acoustic (IA) solitary structures in a three components magneto‐plasma containing cold inertial ions, Boltzmann distributed positrons, and hot non‐thermal electrons. The Zakharov‐Kuznetsov equation has been derived by the reductive perturbation method, and its solitary wave solution has been analyzed. Multi‐dimensional instability has also studied by the small‐k (long wave‐length plane wave) perturbation expansion technique, which is found to exist in such a plasma. The effects of the external magnetic field, nonthermal electrons, obliqueness and temperature ratio have significantly modified the basic properties of small but finite‐amplitude IA solitary waves, such as amplitude, width, instability criterion and the growth rate. The present investigation contributes to the physics of the nonlinear IA waves in space and laboratory electron‐positron‐ion magneto‐plasmas in which wave damping produces an electron tail. (© 2013 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Ion beam driven instabilities in unmagnetized and strongly magnetized plasmas

In this paper, the dissipative instabilities in the interaction of an ion beam with unmagnetized and strongly magnetized plasmas are investigated. In both cases, relevant dispersion equations of high-frequency and ion acoustic waves are obtained. In addition, the resonance frequencies and growth rates of the instabilities are derived. It is shown that the thermal motion of charged particles has positive effects on the resonance frequency but its influence on the growth rate of an instability depends on the plasma conditions. Although in all cases the collisions are found to have a stabilizing effect, it is shown that the dominant type of collisions (electron-neutral or ion-neutral collisions) depends on the frequency range. It is also indicated that the resonance frequency and the growth rate of an instability in the unmagnetized plasma is higher than in the strongly magnetized plasma for non-zero propagation angles.     

Electrostatic instability in magnetically confined inhomogeneous plasma driven by nonlinear force

A theoretical investigation on amplification of electrostatic ion acoustic wave in magnetically confined plasma has been presented in this paper. This investigation considers nonlinear wave–particle interaction process, called plasma maser effect, in presence of drift wave turbulence supported by magnetically confined inhomogeneous plasma. The role of associated nonlinear dissipative force in this effect in a confined plasma has been analyzed. The nonlinear force, which arises as a result of resonant interaction between electrons and modulated fields, is shown to drive the instability. Using the ion fluid equation and the ion equation of continuity, the nonlinear dispersion relation of a test ion acoustic wave has been derived, and the growth rate of ion acoustic wave in presence of low frequency drift wave turbulence has been estimated using Helimak data.     

High-frequency emissions during the propagation of an electron beamin high-density plasma

A relativistic annular electron beam passing through a high-density plasma excites Langmuir waves via Cerenkov interaction. The Langmuir waves are backscattered off ions via nonlinear ion Landau damping. At moderately high amplitudes these waves are parametrically up-converted by the beam into high-frequency electromagnetic radiation, as observed in some recent experiments. A nonlocal theory of this process is developed in a cylindrical geometry. It is seen that the growth rate of the Langmuir wave scales as one-third the power of beam density. The growth rate of parametric instability scales as one-fourth the power of beam density and the square root of beam thickness     

Filamentation Instability in a Current‐Carrying Plasma in the Presence of Quantum Effects

The filamentation instability of a current‐carrying plasma under the diffusion condition is investigated taking into account the Bohm potential and the Fermi electron pressure. Using quantum hydrodynamic equations, the dispersion relation and growth rate of the instability is obtained. It is found that the filamentation instability, in the presence of quantum effects, depends on various characteristic parameters such as: electron Fermi velocity, plasma number density, ion thermal velocity and electron drift velocity. Moreover, the wavelength region in which the instability occurs is more restricted and the minimum size of filaments is larger, in comparison with the classical case. It is also found that the growth rate of the instability is smaller in the presence of quantum effects. (© 2015 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Nonlinear longitudinal oscillations of relativistic plasma

The investigation has been made of nonlinear forced longitudinal oscillations of a relativistic plasma. It was demonstrated that: a) the nonlinear terms (v▽)p arising in the equations of motion do not restrict the electron oscillation amplitude increase in the region of plasma resonance; b) the nonlinear terms due to the relativistic nature of oscillations, firstly, limit the oscillation amplitude in the resonance region and, secondly, lead to the development of a parametric instability. The harmonic, sub- and ultraharmonic oscillations turned out to be unstable. The conditions for the instability as well as expressions for the growth rates of unstable oscillations were obtained.