Linear Theory of Electron-Plasma Waves at Arbitrary Collisionality

Dataset · Tue Dec 04 00:00:00 EST 2018

DOI:https://doi.org/10.7910/DVN/LOAT9C· OSTI ID:1880321

Jorge, R.; Ricci, P.; Brunner, S.; Gamba, S.; Konovets, V.; Loureiro, N. F.; Perrone, L. M.; Teixeira, N.

The dynamics of electron-plasma waves are described at arbitrary collisionality by considering the full Coulomb collision operator. The description is based on a Hermite- Laguerre decomposition of the velocity dependence of the electron distribution function. The damping rate, frequency, and eigenmode spectrum of electron-plasma waves are found as functions of the collision frequency and wavelength. A comparison is made between the collisionless Landau damping limit, the Lenard-Bernstein and Dougherty collision operators, and the electron-ion collision operator, finding large deviations in the damping rates and eigenmode spectra. A purely damped entropy mode, characteristic of a plasma where pitch-angle scattering effects are dominant with respect to collisionless effects, is shown to emerge numerically, and its dispersion relation is analytically derived. It is shown that such a mode is absent when simplified collision operators are used, and that like-particle collisions strongly influence the damping rate of the entropy mode.

• Research Organization: Massachusetts Inst. of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, MA (United States). Plasma Science and Fusion Center
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Office of Science (SC), Fusion Energy Sciences (FES)
• DOE Contract Number: FG02-91ER54109
• OSTI ID: 1880321
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY