Generation of antitropic electron beams by self-generated electric field. Kinetic description

TL;DR

This paper uses a kinetic model to analyze how self-generated electric fields in plasma can produce antitropic electron beams with velocities exceeding a certain threshold, revealing new insights into plasma wave structures.

Contribution

It demonstrates that strong self-generated electric fields always produce high-velocity antitropic electron beams and introduces a new class of wave structures with nonzero average potential.

Findings

Self-generated electric fields produce electron beams with velocities much larger than V.

Incorrect assumptions about trapped particle distribution functions are challenged.

Maximum amplitude of electric field in stationary plasma is determined.

Abstract

This paper makes use of a one-dimensional kinetic model to investigate the nonlinear longitudinal dynamics of electron beams generated in the plasma under the influence of a self-generated electric field. It is expressed as where is a wave potential, , and charge particle distribution functions satisfy the Vlasov equation. It is proved that its correct solution is characterized by sudden change in the resonant part of the distribution function. Hence, in particular, the incorrectness of the established in the literature point of view follows that the fast, with velocities over V, and slow, with velocities under V, trapped particles are described by the same distribution function. Also for the first time it is shown that the self-generated strong electric field always produces antitropic electron beams with the velocities much larger than the value V, including the cold plasma limit. The possibility of implementing a new class of self-consistent wave structures with a nonzero average potential is shown. Maximum possible amplitude of a self-generated electric field in a stationary collisionless plasma is determined.