Interaction of ultracold non-ideal ion-electron plasma with a uniform magnetic field

TL;DR

This study uses molecular dynamics simulations to analyze the behavior of ultracold non-ideal ion-electron plasma in a magnetic field, revealing non-monotonic collision rates and two distinct diffusion types.

Contribution

It provides new insights into collision rates and diffusion mechanisms in ultracold plasma under magnetic influence, highlighting the coexistence of classical and Bohm diffusion.

Findings

Electron-ion collision rate varies non-monotonically with magnetic field strength.

Two diffusion regimes identified: classical Brownian and Bohm diffusion.

Simulation results improve understanding of plasma transport properties.

Abstract

The method of molecular dynamics is used to study behavior of a ultracold non-ideal ion-electron Be plasma in a uniform magnetic field. Our simulations yield an estimate for the rate of electron-ion collisions which is non-monotonicallydependent on the magnetic field magnitude. Also they explicitly show that there are two types of diffusion: classical one, corresponding to Brownian motion of particles, and Bohm diffusion when the trajectory of particles (guiding centers) includes substantial lengths of drift motion.