QCD plasma parameters in axial gauge

Within the framework of imaginary time formalism we investigate the structure of the gluon polarization tensor and relate its structure functions to the dispersion relation of plasma eigenmodes. To one loop order, we calculate the transversal structure function to leading order in the high temperature expansion as well as the first subleading order contribution in the long wavelength limit. The result is used to express the dynamical mass and the damping constant for transversal plasma eigenmodes. The aim of our present paper is a systematic discussion of the gauge fixing vector dependence of the damping constant. In the limit of temporal axial gauge we encounter a negative damping constant contradicting previous results.