Large amplitude ionacoustic waves in a plasma with an electron beam

Yasunori Nejoh and Heiji Sanuki

Citation: Phys. Plasmas 2, 4122 (1995); doi: 10.1063/1.871035
View online: http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.871035
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Published by the American Institute of Physics.

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Large amplitude ion-acoustic waves in a plasma with an electron beam
Yasunori Nejoh
Hachinohe Institute of Technology, 88-1, Myo-Obiraki, Hachinohe, 031, Japan
Heiji Sanuki
National Institute for Fusion Science, Furocyo, Chikusa-ku, Nagoya, 464-01, Japan
(Received 20 March 1995; accepted 26 July 1995)
The nonlinear wave structures of large amplitude ion-acoustic waves are studied in a plasma with
an electron beam, by the pseudopotential method. The region of the existence of large amplitude
ion-acoustic waves is examined, showing that the condition of the existence sensitively depends on
the parameters such as the electron beam temperature, the ion temperature, the electrostatic
potential, and the concentration of the electron beam density. It turns out that the region of the
existence spreads as the beam temperature increases but the effect of the electron beam velocity is
relatively smalL New findings of large amplitude ion-acoustic waves in a plasma with an electron
beam are predicted. 1995 American Institute of Physics.
I. INTRODUCTION
Nonlinear waves may play important roles in rarefied
space plasmas in the Earth's auroral zone,I-3 the physics of
solar atmosphere,4 and other astrophysical plasmas.
5

6
There
has been increasing interest in interpreting the low frequency
nonlinear broadband electrostatic noise in space
observations.
7

8
Observations convince us of the fact that sta-
tionary nonlinear ion-acoustic waves may be excited when
an electron beam is injected into a plasma.
9
,l0 In the actual
situations, an electron beam component is frequently ob-
served in the region of space where ion-acoustic waves exist.
On the other hand, it is known that high-speed electrons have
an influence on the excitation of various kinds of nonlinear
waves in the interplanetary space and the Earth's
magnetosphere. I 1-14 The nonlinear ion-acoustic solitary
waves have been reported
l5
in the plasma with drifting elec-
trons. However, not many theoretical works on these topics
have been done.
In this article, we make an attempt to theoretically inves-
tigate the possibility of the existence of large amplitude ion-
acoustic waves under the influence of an electron beam in a
plasma consisting of warm ions and hot isothermal electrons.
We also demonstrate the region of the existence of the large
amplitude ion-acoustic waves and study the dependence of
the region of the existence on the parameters such as the
electron beam temperature, the concentration of the beam
density, and so on.
The layout of this article is as follows. In Sec. II, we
present the basic equations for a plasma with an electron
beam and derive the pseudopotential for large amplitude ion-
acoustic waves. In Sec. III, we define the condition of the
existence of large amplitude ion-acoustic waves and illus-
trate the dependency of the region of the existence region on
the several parameters. The last section is devoted to the
concluding discussion.
II. BASIC EQUATIONS AND FORMULATION
We assume a plasma consisting of warm ions and hot
isothermal electrons traversed by a warm electron beam, and
consider one-dimensional propagation. We adopt the fluid
equations for the ions and beam electrons.
The continuity equation and the equation of motion for
ions are described by
an a
-+ - (nu)=O
at ax '
(1)
au au 30' an ae/>
-+u -+ n-+-=O
at ax (I+a)2 ax ax '
(2)
where we express the pressure term in Eq. (2) by the ther-
modynamic equation of state. Here, (J'=T/Te and
a=nb01nO' where Ti(Te) and nO(nbO) are the ion (electron)
temperature and the unperturbed background electron (elec-
tron beam) density, respectively.
We have the following two equations for the beam elec-
trons:
(3)
au b au b v I an b I ae/>
-+Ub-+------=O.
at ax p, nb ax p, ax
(4)
We assume an isothermal equation of state for the beam elec-
trons, because of the existence of the finite beam electron
temperature. In Eq. (4), p,=m/mi and V=TbITe. where me'
mi' Tb denote the electron mass, the ion mass, and the beam
electron temperature, respectively.
The electron density follows the Boltzmann distribution,
The Poisson's equation is given by
a
2
1>
ax2 =ne+nb-
n
.
(5)
(6)
The variables neon b, n. Vb' v. and 1> refer to the electron
density, the beam electron density, the ion density, the beam
electron velocity, the ion velocity, and the electrostatic po-
tential, respectively. The velocities are normalized by the ion
sound speed v s = ( K Tel m i 12; the time t and the distance x
by the ion plasma frequency w;/ = ( Eom;l noe
2
) 112 and the
electron Debye length "'D=( EoKT/noe
2
) 1/2; and the densi-
4122 Phys. Plasmas 2 (11), November 1995 1 070-664Xf95/2( 11 )/412215/$6.00 1995 American Institute of Physics
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ties by the background electron density no, the potential by
KTie, where e is the charge of the electron.
In order to solve Eqs. (1)-(6), we introduce the variable
g=x-Mt, which is the moving frame with the velocity M.
Then the basic equations (1)-(4) and (6) become
an a
-M ag+ ag (nv)=O, (7)
av av 30' an acf>
-M ag+
U
ag+ (l+a)2
n
ag+ ag=O, (8)
(9)
(10)
(11)
Integrating Eqs. (7) and (8) and using the boundary condi-
tions, cf>---+0, n-41 +a, nb-'ta, v-'tO, Vb-"VO at g-'too, we
obtain
l+a
(12)
Integrating Eqs. (9) and (10) and using the same boundary
conditions, we get
a
(13)
after the brief calculation.
Using Eqs. (5), (12), and (D), the Poisson's equation
(11) reduces to
(14)
where V(cf denotes the pseudopotential. Integration of Eq.
(14) gives the Energy law,
I [d cf>] 2
2" dg +V()=O.
(15)
From Eq. (14), the pseudopotential V() becomes
-vc)=eXP()-l-[ 2: -1]+ 2(1;a) M22!30' 1].
1-(IlJv)(vo-M)2 v M2-30'
The oscillatory solution of the large amplitude nonlinear ion-
acoustic waves exists when the following two conditions are
satisfied:
(i) The potential V( ) has the maximum value if
d
2
V()ld2<0 at =O. This condition derives the inequal-
ity,
2 1 +a
M >30'+ l+alv'
(17)
where we assumed M)2. Although the sub-
sonic and supersonic ion-acoustic waves can exist in the
plasma under consideration, we are now interested only in
the supersonic wave. It should be noted that V() is real,
when
and
The region of the existence of is characterized by these
conditions.
Phys. Plasmas, Vol. 2, No. 11, November 1995
(16)
(ii) Nonlinear ion-acoustic waves exist only when
where the maximum potential epM is determined
by M=(v12)[I-(,u/v)(vo- M)2]. This implies that the
inequality
:s;;;av+exp(v12)-I, (18)
holds, where we use the approximation M)2.
We show the maximum Mach number as a function of a in
Fig. 1, where v=0.2 and 0'=0.4. The maximum Mach num-
ber and, correspondingly, the maximum amplitude of the ion-
acoustic wave significantly depends on the parameters a, P,
and 0'.
A complete analytical investigation of the ion-acoustic
solitons in an electron beam plasma is possible for small
amplitude wave limit The specific results can be ob-
tained by expanding Veep) in powers of and keeping up to
the third-order terms 3. Accordingly, Eq. (16) takes the
form
Y. Nejoh and H. Sanuki 4123
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1.6
1.5
1.4
M
1.3
1.2
1.1
1
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8
a
FIG. 1. The maximum Mach number depending on the concentration of the
electron beam density a, in the case of 0-=0.4 and v"'0.2.
-V(tP )
0.001
o
-0.001
.2
FIG. 2. Bird's eye view of the pseudopotential under the conditions of
vo=1.25, M=1.3, 17=0.4, v=O.2. and ,u=1/1836.
4124 Phys. Plasmas, Vol. 2. No. 11. November 1995
0.001
0.0005

-0.0005
-0.001
-0.0015
-0.002
o 0.02 0.04 0.06 0.08 0.1
FIG. 3. A pseudopotential curve of large amplitude ion waves for vo= 1.25,
M == 1.3, 17=0.4. v=0.2, and a=0.104.
It should be noted that the ion-acoustic soliton exists in the
limiting case with 4" 1.
We next consider the region of the existence of the large
amplitude ion-acoustic waves in the plasma with an electron
beam.
III. THE REGION OF THE EXISTENCE OF LARGE
AMPLITUDE ION-ACOUSTIC WAVES
We show a bird's eye view of - V() in Fig. 2, in the
case of v=O.2, vo"" 1.25, M = 1.3, O"==OA, and ,u= 111836.
Figure 3 illustrates the dependence of the pseudopotential
- V( ) on the potential when the ratio of the concentration
of the electron beam density to the background electron
0.2
FIG. 4. Bird's eye view of the pseudopotential under the conditions of
vo=1.25, M=1.3. 17=0.4, v=O.4, and W=1I1836.
Y. Nejoh and H. Sanuki
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-V(q,)
0.005
O ~ ~ ~ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ~
-0.005
-0.01
-0.015
-0.02
o 0.05 0.1 0.15 0.2
FIG. 5. A pseudopotentiaI curve oflarge amplitude ion waves for vo= 1.25,
M=1.J, u=O.4, v=O.4, and a=0.55.
4.0
3.0
a
2.0
1.0
0.0
0.0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4
v
riG. 6. The region of the existence of large amplitude ion-acoustic waves
depending on the concentration of the electron beam density a and the
electron beam temperature v, in the case of vo=1.25, M=1.3, u=O.4, and
J.L= 111836. Large amplitude ion-acoustic waves can exist in the region
bounded by the two curves.
Phys. Plasmas, Vol. 2, No. 11, November 1995
0.2
0.1
o . o ~ - - - J - - L - - - - L - - ~ - - - - - - ~ - - L - - - ~
0.0
1.0 2.0
a
FIG. 7. The </>-a plane where ion-acoustic waves exist, in the case of (a)
vo= 1.25, M = 1.3, u=O.4, and v=0.2; (b) vo= 1.25, M = 1.3, 0-=0.4, and
v=0.3; (c) vo= 1.25, M= 1.3, 0-=0.4, and v=O.4. Large amplitude ion-
acoustic waves can exist in the lower region of the curve.
density is fixed to be a=O.104, in the case of v=O.2. In Fig.
4, we show a bird's eye view of the pseudopotential when
v=OA, vo=1.25, M=1.3, If=OA, and ,u=1/1836., The
pseudopotential - V(</J) versus potential </J in this case is also
illustrated in Fig. 5 for a=O.55.
From Figs. 2 and 3, in the case of vo=1.25, M=1.3,
cr=OA, and ,u= 111836, we can understand the following by
the numerical calculation:
(1) In the range of a>O.280, the pseudopotential is al-
ways positive. In this case, the potential well is not formed.
(2) If O.086<a<O.280, the pseudopotential forms the
potential well. In the well, large amplitude ion-acoustic
waves can propagate. As an example of this case, we illus-
trate the pseudopotential in Fig. 3 when a=O.104. The po-
tential well becomes deep as a decreases.
(3) In the range of O.086>a, the pseudopotential is al-
ways negative. In this case, the well is not formed.
We also understand that the similar properties are described
from Figs. 4 and 5.
In Fig. 6, we illustrate the region of the existence of
large amplitude ion-acoustic waves depending on the ratio a
of concentration of the electron beam density to the back-
ground electron density and the ratio v of the electron beam
Y. Nejoh and H. Sanuki 4125
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temperature to free electron temperature, in the case of
Vo= 1.25, M= 1.3, u=OA, and ,u= 111836. Large amplitude
ion-acoustic waves propagate in the region bounded by the
two curves but do not exist in other regions. In addition, we
show the region of the existence of large amplitude ion
waves in the qra plane in Figs. 7(a), 7(b), and 7(c) for
v=O.2, 0.3, and 0.4, respectively. Large amplitude ion-
acoustic waves exist in the lower region of the curves.
It turns out that large amplitude nonlinear ion-acoustic
waves can exist under proper conditions mentioned above.
IV. CONCLUDING DISCUSSION
The nonlinear wave structures of large amplitude ion-
acoustic waves are studied in a plasma with an electron
beam. We present the region of the existence of the large
amplitude ion-acoustic waves on the basis of the fluid equa-
tions for an electron beam-plasma system.
We investigate the conditions of the existence for the
stationary supersonic ion-acoustic waves, by analyzing the
structure of pseudopotential. Typical results are illustrated in
Figs. 1-7. The results are briefly summarized as follows:
(1) The conditions of the existence of large amplitude ion-
acoustic waves sensitively depend on the electron beam
density, the temperature of electron beams, and also the
ratio of the bulk ion temperature to the electron tempera-
ture.
(2) The effect of the concentration of the electron beam den-
sity reduces the propagation speed of the ion-acoustic
waves.
(3) The allowable range of the concentration of the electron
density becomes wider as the beam temperature de-
creases.
(4) The allowable range of the electrostatic potential be-
comes wider as the beam temperature increases.
(5) The effect of the velocity of the electron beam is small,
compared with the effects of the electron beam tempera-
ture, the beam density and the ion temperature.
4126 Phys. Plasmas, Vol. 2, No. 11, November 1995
(6) The region in qra plane where large amplitude ion-
acoustic waves exist, spreads as the beam temperature
increases.
The present investigation predicts new findings on large
amplitude nonlinear ion-acoustic waves in a plasma with an
electron beam. In actual situations, large amplitude ion-
acoustic wave events associated with electron beams are fre-
quently observed in interplanetary space.I,5,8 Hence, refer-
ring to the present studies, we can understand the properties
of large amplitude ion-acoustic waves in space plasmas
where the electron beam exists. Although we have not re-
ferred to any specific observation, the present theory is ap-
plicable to analyzing large amplitude ion-acoustic waves,
such as shock and solitary waves, associated with electron
beams which may occur in space and laboratory plasmas.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This work was partly supported by the Joint Research
Program with the National Institute for Fusion Science. The
author (Y. Nejoh) wishes to thank the Aomori Foundation for
Promotion of Technological Educations and the Special Re-
search Program of Hachinohe Institute of Technology.
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