Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Dedication
- Contents
- Preface
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Characteristic Parameters of a Plasma
- 3 Single-Particle Motions
- 4 Waves in a Cold Plasma
- 5 Kinetic Theory and the Moment Equations
- 6 Magnetohydrodynamics
- 7 MHD Equilibria and Stability
- 8 Discontinuities and Shock Waves
- 9 Electrostatic Waves in a Hot Unmagnetized Plasma
- 10 Waves in a Hot Magnetized Plasma
- 11 Nonlinear Effects
- 12 Collisional Processes
- Appendix A Symbols
- Appendix B Useful Trigonometric Identities
- Appendix C Vector Differential Operators
- Appendix D Vector Calculus Identities
- Index
- References
4 - Waves in a Cold Plasma
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 16 March 2017
Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Dedication
- Contents
- Preface
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Characteristic Parameters of a Plasma
- 3 Single-Particle Motions
- 4 Waves in a Cold Plasma
- 5 Kinetic Theory and the Moment Equations
- 6 Magnetohydrodynamics
- 7 MHD Equilibria and Stability
- 8 Discontinuities and Shock Waves
- 9 Electrostatic Waves in a Hot Unmagnetized Plasma
- 10 Waves in a Hot Magnetized Plasma
- 11 Nonlinear Effects
- 12 Collisional Processes
- Appendix A Symbols
- Appendix B Useful Trigonometric Identities
- Appendix C Vector Differential Operators
- Appendix D Vector Calculus Identities
- Index
- References
Summary
When a wave propagates through a plasma with a finite temperature the forces acting on a charged particle are Doppler-shifted from their rest-frame frequency by the thermal motion of the particle. Since these Doppler shifts greatly complicate the analysis, in this chapter the temperature is assumed to be zero, so that there are no thermal motions. Hence the term “cold plasma.” Two types of plasmas are analyzed, those with no background magnetic field, and those with a background magnetic field. To further simplify the analysis, the wave amplitudes are assumed to be small, so that the equations of motion can be linearized. The result is a very general solution can for all of the electromagnetic wave modes that can propagate in a cold plasma, plus one purely electrostatic mode, called the electron plasma oscillation. This analysis reveals almost all of the electromagnetic waves that can propagate in a plasma.
- Type
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- Information
- Introduction to Plasma PhysicsWith Space, Laboratory and Astrophysical Applications, pp. 87 - 147Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2017
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