THERMAL CUTOFFS OF THE WHISTLER MODE OF PROPAGATION

Technical Report · Fri Mar 01 04:00:00 EST 1963

OSTI ID:4675748

Liemohn, H B

Recent theoretical analysis of the thermal damping of right-hand circularly-polarized electromagnetic waves propagating along a static magnetic field (whistler mode) in hot plasmas that have (Cauchy) velocity distributions of the form (v/sup 2/ + a/sup 2/)/sup -3/ was extended in order to compare the results more directiy with experiments. The dispersion equation has a simple algebraic form which can be solved for all frequencies including cyclotron resonance. A thermal Doppler shift in the cyclotron resonance attenuates the mode below the zero-temperature resonance and produces an effective cutoff experimentally. For a given thermal damping decrement in a magnetic field, curves were obtained that relate the cutoff frequency'' to the electron density and temperature of the plasma. The results are compared with previous numerical analyses using the Maxwell distribution and with measurements of the thermal shift of the cutoff in a microwave experiment. (auth)

• Research Organization: Boeing Scientific Research Labs., Seattle
• NSA Number: NSA-17-033143
• OSTI ID: 4675748
• Report Number(s): D1-82-0229
• Country of Publication: Country unknown/Code not available
• Language: English

Related Subjects

CHARGED PARTICLES
CYCLOTRON RADIATION
DENSITY
DIAGRAMS
DISPERSIONS
DISTRIBUTION
ELECTROMAGNETIC WAVES
ELECTRONS
EQUATIONS
FREQUENCY
MAGNETIC FIELDS
MAXWELL DISTRIBUTION
MEASURED VALUES
MICROWAVES
MOTION
NUMERICALS
PHYSICS
PLASMA
POLARIZATION
RADIATIONS
RESONANCE
SPECTRAL SHIFT
TEMPERATURE
VELOCITY