Linear and nonlinear wave propagation in weakly relativistic quantum plasmas

TL;DR

This paper investigates wave propagation in weakly relativistic quantum plasmas, highlighting how spin-orbit interactions and Thomas precession influence dispersion relations and ponderomotive forces under high density and magnetic field conditions.

Contribution

It introduces a kinetic model that incorporates relativistic quantum effects, revealing their impact on plasma wave behavior and forces.

Findings

Spin-orbit interaction affects dispersion relations in magnetized plasmas.

Spin-orbit interaction significantly influences ponderomotive forces in unmagnetized plasmas.

High densities and magnetic fields amplify relativistic quantum effects.

Abstract

We consider a recently derived kinetic model for weakly relativistic quantum plasmas. We find that that the effects of spin-orbit interaction and Thomas precession may alter the linear dispersion relation for a magnetized plasma in case of high plasma densities and/or strong magnetic fields. Furthermore, the ponderomotive force induced by an electromagnetic pulse is studied for an unmagnetized plasma. It turns out that for this case the spin-orbit interaction always give a significant contribution to the quantum part of the ponderomotive force.