Related papers: Phase space eigenfunctions with applications to co…
In order to understand the conditions which lead a highly magnetized, relativistic plasma to become unstable, and in such cases how the plasma evolves, we study a prototypical class of magnetostatic equilibria where the magnetic field…
There are two usual computational methods for linear (waves and instabilities) problem: eigenvalue (dispersion relation) solver and initial value solver. In fact, we can introduce an idea of the combination of them, i.e., we keep time…
Traditional plasma physics has mainly focused on regimes characterized by high temperatures and low densities, for which quantum-mechanical effects have virtually no impact. However, recent technological advances (particularly on…
We construct a mean-field model that describes the nonlinear dynamics of a spin-polarized electron gas interacting with fixed, positively-charged ions possessing a magnetic moment that evolves in time. The mobile electrons are modeled by a…
The Weibel instability driven by two symmetric counter-streaming relativistic electron plasmas, also referred to as current-filamentation instability, is studied in a constant and uniform external magnetic field aligned with the plasma…
Fast, counter-streaming plasma outflows drive magnetic field amplification, plasma heating, and particle acceleration in numerous astrophysical environments, from supernova remnant shocks to active galactic nuclei jets. Understanding how,…
The kinetic theory of the microinstabilities of a cylindrical plasma, produced by the cylindrical azimuthally symmetric (azimuthal mode number $m_{0}=0$) helicon wave, is developed. This theory is based on the derived linear integral…
Eigenvalue analysis is a well-established tool for stability analysis of dynamical systems. However, there are situations where eigenvalues miss some important features of physical models. For example, in models of incompressible fluid…
Wigner's quasi-probability distribution function in phase-space is a special (Weyl) representation of the density matrix. It has been useful in describing quantum transport in quantum optics; nuclear physics; decoherence (eg, quantum…
Radiation damping of the motion of charged particles in relativistic, optically thin plasmas is described within the framework of the covariant gyrokinetic theory. It involves description of the collisionless single-particle dynamics as…
A novel approach for studying phase transitions in systems with quantum degrees of freedom is discussed. Starting from the microscopic hamiltonian of a quantum model, we first derive a set of exact differential equations for the free energy…
Using the phase-space formulation of quantum mechanics, we derive a four-component Wigner equation for a system composed of spin-1/2 fermions (typically, electrons) including the Zeeman effect and the spin-orbit coupling. This Wigner…
In nonlinear dynamical systems with highly nonorthogonal linear eigenvectors, linear non-modal analysis is more useful than normal mode analysis in predicting turbulent properties. However, the non-trivial time evolution of non-modal…
The evolution of the filamentation instability produced by two counter-streaming pair plasmas is studied with particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations in both one (1D) and two (2D) spatial dimensions. Radiation friction effects on particles are…
The adiabatic inhomogeneities of the scalar curvature lead to a compressible flow affecting the dynamics of the hydromagnetic nonlinearities. The influence of the plasma on the evolution of a putative magnetic field is explored with the aim…
High-energy astrophysical systems frequently contain collisionless relativistic plasmas that are heated by turbulent cascades and cooled by emission of radiation. Understanding the nature of this radiative turbulence is a frontier of…
Magnetic field amplification by relativistic streaming plasma instabilities is central to a wide variety of high-energy astrophysical environments as well as to laboratory scenarios associated with intense lasers and electron beams. We…
We describe kinetic simulations of transient problems in partially ionized weakly-collisional plasma around spherical bodies absorbing or emitting charged particles. Numerical solutions of kinetic equations for electrons and ions in 1D2V…
We present evidence that relativistic shocks propagating in unmagnetized plasmas can self-consistently accelerate particles. We use long-term two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations to study the well-developed shock structure in…
A relativistic electron beam propagating through plasma induces a return current in the system. Such a system of counterstreaming forward and return current is susceptible to host of instabilities out of which Weibel remains a dominant mode…