The purpose of this paper is to bridge kinetic plasma descriptions and low frequency single fluid models. More specifically, the asymptotics leading to Magneto-Hydro-Dynamic (MHD) regimes starting from the Vlasov-Maxwell system are investigated. The analogy with the derivation, from the Vlasov-Poisson system, of a fluid representation for the ions coupled to the Boltzmann relation for electrons is also outlined. The aim is to identify asymptotic parameters explaining the transitions from one microscopic description to a macroscopic low frequency model. These investigations provide ground work for the derivation of multi-scale numerical methods, model coupling or physics based preconditioning.
Kinetic model of three component, weakly ionized, collisional plasma with a beam of neutral particles is developed. New dispersion relations for linear perturbations are derived and analyzed in various limiting cases.
Plasmas with anisotropic electron velocity distribution functions are needed for the controlled study of kinetic plasma instabilities in the laboratory. We demonstrate that such plasma can be produced using ultrashort laser pulses via optical-field ionization (OFI). We experimentally show this control by using Thomson scattering as a diagnostic to probe the characteristic electron velocity distributions using linearly and circularly polarized laser pulses to ionize helium. Furthermore the He plasma produced by a circularly polarized light pulse exhibits the onset of the electron streaming inst…
The dielectric permeability tensor for spin polarized plasmas is derived in terms of the spin-1/2 quantum kinetic model in six-dimensional phase space. Expressions for the distribution function and spin distribution function are derived in linear approximations on the path of dielectric permeability tensor derivation. The dielectric permeability tensor is derived the spin-polarized degenerate electron gas. It is also discussed at the finite temperature regime, where the equilibrium distribution function is presented by the spin-polarized Fermi-Dirac distribution. Consideration of the spin-pola…
The nonlinear frequency shift is derived in a transparent asymptotic form for intense Langmuir waves in general collisionless plasma. The formula describes both fluid and kinetic effects simultaneously. The fluid nonlinearity is expressed, for the first time, through the plasma dielectric function, and the kinetic nonlinearity accounts for both smooth distributions and trapped-particle beams. Various known limiting scalings are reproduced as special cases. The calculation avoids differential equations and can be extended straightforwardly to other nonlinear plasma waves.
In plasmas with electron drift (current) relative to static ions, the ion acoustic wave is subject to the kinetic instability which takes place if the directed electron speed exceeds the ion acoustic speed. The instability threshold becomes different in the case of one quasi-neutral electron-ion plasma propagating through another static quasi-neutral (target) plasma. The threshold velocity of the propagating plasma may be well below the ion acoustic speed of the static plasma. Such a current-less instability may frequently be expected in space and astrophysical plasmas.
The non-modal kinetic theory of the kinetic drift instability of plasma shear flows [Phys.Plasmas, 18, 062103 (2011)] is extended to the investigation of the long-time evolution of the hydrodynamic ion temperature gradient and resistive drift instabilities in plasma shear flow. We find, that these hydrodynamic instabilities passed in their temporal evolution in shear flow through the kinetic stage of the evolution. In linear theory, this evolution involves the time dependent, due to flow shear, effects of the finite Larmor radius, which resulted in the non-modal effect of the decrease with tim…
The low-frequency limit of Maxwell equations is considered in the Maxwell-Vlasov system. This limit produces a neutral Vlasov system that captures essential features of plasma dynamics, while neglecting radiation effects. Euler-Poincaré reduction theory is used to show that the neutral Vlasov kinetic theory possesses a variational formulation in both Lagrangian and Eulerian coordinates. By construction, the model recovers all collisionless neutral models employed in plasma simulations. Then, comparisons between the neutral Vlasov system and hybrid kinetic-fluid models are presented in the line…
Large amplitude kinetic Alfvénon (exact Alfvén soliton) matching condition is investigated in quasineutral electron-ion and electron-positron-ion plasmas immersed in a uniform magnetic field. Using the standard pseudopotential method, the magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) equations are exactly solved and a global allowed matching condition for propagation of kinetic solitary waves is derived. It is remarked that, depending on the plasma parameters, the kinetic solitons can be sub- or super-Alfvénic, in general. It is further revealed that, either upper or lower soliton speed-limit is independent of f…
A kinetic theory for electromagnetic ion waves in a cold relativistic plasma is derived. The kinetic equation for the broadband electromagnetic ion waves is coupled to the slow density response via an acoustic equation driven by ponderomotive force like term linear in the electromagnetic field amplitude. The modulational instability growth rate is derived for an arbitrary spectrum of waves. The monochromatic and random phase cases are studied.
Transfer of free energy from large to small velocity-space scales by phase mixing leads to Landau damping in a linear plasma. In a turbulent drift-kinetic plasma, this transfer is statistically nearly canceled by an inverse transfer from small to large velocity-space scales due to "anti-phase-mixing" modes excited by a stochastic form of plasma echo. Fluid moments (density, velocity, temperature) are thus approximately energetically isolated from the higher moments of the distribution function, so phase mixing is ineffective as a dissipation mechanism when the plasma collisionality is small.
We describe the implementation of 1d1v and 1d2v Vlasov and Fokker-Planck kinetic solvers with adaptive mesh refinement in phase space (AMPS) and coupling these kinetic solvers to Poisson equation solver for electric field. We demonstrate that coupling AMPS kinetic and electrostatic solvers can be done efficiently without splitting phase-space transport. We show that Eulerian fluid and kinetic solvers with dynamically adaptive Cartesian mesh can be used for simulations of collisionless plasma expansion into vacuum. The Vlasov-Fokker-Planck solver is demonstrated for the analysis of electron acc…
New unstable temperature gradient driven modes in an inhomogeneous plasma are identified. These modes represent transient $ω\simeq k_{\Vert }v_{th}^{(e,i)}$ sound oscillations in magnetized plasma that are kinetically destabilized via Landau interactions. Electron and ion sound branches are unstable for large values of the Larmor radius parameter $% k_{\bot}ρ_{e,i}\gg 1,$ respectively. The instability occurs due to a specific plasma response that significantly deviates from Boltzmann distribution in the region $k_{\bot}ρ_{i,e}\gg 1$ . Pacs: 52.35 Kt, 52.35 Qz
The linear non-modal kinetic theory of the kinetic drift-Alfven instability of plasma shear flows reveals the temporal non-modal growth with growing with time growth rate. The turbulent scattering of the sheared modes on ions accelerates this growth. The instability ceases its growth when the coupling of the drift and Alfven waves violates due to the changing with time frequencies of the drift and Alfven waves in shear flow.
In the present paper we introduce a full and closed system of atomic kinetic equations on fractions of atomic energy levels taking into account the effect of the plasma ions electric microfield mixing dynamics. The system of equations that we present is deduced from a full quantum multi-atomic states density matrix master equation. The analytical derivation of this atomic kinetic system of equations is based on the introduction of a new hierarchy chain of equations involving a new set of statistical atomic variables. The final system of atomic kinetic equations is obtained by introducing relat…
We create streaming ultracold neutral plasmas by tailoring the photoionizing laser beam that creates the plasma. By varying the electron temperature, we control the relative velocity of the streaming populations, and, in conjunction with variation of the plasma density, this controls the ion collisionality of the colliding streams. Laser-induced fluorescence is used to map the spatially resolved density and velocity distribution function for the ions. We identify the lack of local thermal equilibrium and distinct populations of interpenetrating, counter-streaming ions as signatures of kinetic …
Starting from first principles quantum kinetic theory for ideal plasmas with exchange effects, the quantum hydrodynamic equations are derived taking moments of the corresponding exchange-Vlasov equation. The case of an electron-ion plasma where ions are entirely classical is considered. The linear dispersion relation for ion-acoustic waves is found from the macroscopic equations and compared with exchange quantum kinetic theory, yielding a qualitative agreement apart from a numerical factor of order one in the exchange contribution, assuming a Maxwellian background as a first step, for analyti…
A nonlinear kinetic equation for nonrelativistic quantum plasma with electromagnetic interaction of particles is obtained in the Hartree's mean-field approximation. It is cast in a convenient form of Vlasov-Boltzmann-type equation with "quantum interference integral", that allows for relatively straightforward modification of existing classical Vlasov codes to incorporate quantum effects (quantum statistics and quantum interference of overlapping particles wave functions), without changing the bulk of the codes. Such modification (upgrade) of existing Vlasov codes may provide a direct and effe…
We investigate the formation of collisionless magnetized shocks triggered by the interaction between magnetized plasma flows and miniature-sized (order of plasma kinetic-scales) magnetic obstacles resorting to massively parallel, full particle-in-cell simulations, including the electron kinetics. The critical obstacle size to generate a compressed plasma region ahead of these objects is determined by independently varying the magnitude of the dipolar magnetic moment and the plasma magnetization. We find that the effective size of the obstacle depends on the relative orientation between the dip…
A rigorous and most general covariant kinetic formalism is developed to study the nonlinear waves interaction in relativistic Vlasov plasmas. The typical nonlinear plasma reaction is a nonlinear current measured by the nonlinear plasma conductivity, and these quantities are derived here on the basis of relativistic Vlasov-Maxwell equations. Knowing the nonlinear plasma conductivity allows us to determine all plasma modes nonlinearly excited in plasma. The general covariant form of nonlinear conductivity is provided first for any value of plasma temperature and for the whole complex frequency p…
Plasmas in which there is a threshold for a dominant reaction to take place (such as recombination or attachment) will have particle distributions that evolve as the reaction progresses. The form of the Boltzmann collision term in such a context will cause the distribution to drift from its initial form, and so cause for example temperature fluctuations in the plasma if the distribution is originally Maxwellian. This behaviour will impact on the relevant reaction rates in a feedback loop that is missing from simple chemical kinetic descriptions since the plasma cannot be considered to be isoth…
Efficiency of collective beam-plasma interaction strongly depends on the growth rates of dominant instabilities excited in the system. Nevertheless, exact calculations of the full unstable spectrum in the framework of relativistic kinetic theory for arbitrary magnetic fields and particle distributions were unknown until now. In this paper we give an example of such a calculation answering the question whether the finite thermal spreads of plasma electrons are able to suppress the fastest growing modes in the beam-plasma system. It is shown that nonrelativistic temperatures of Maxwellian plasma…
A brief review of the existing kinetic-magnetohydrodynamic(MHD) hybrid models for the alpha particle physics in burning plasma demonstrates that the pressure-coupling scheme is equivalent to the current-coupling scheme only in a specific dynamic regime where the alpha particle density is much lower than the background ion and electron. A more comprehensive kinetic-multifluid model is proposed for a proper account of the dynamical regime of the burning plasma where both the energetic alpha and the helium ash particles are present. The Kinetic-multifluid model is further simplified into an exten…
Active Plasma Resonance Spectroscopy (APRS) is a well-established plasma diagnostic method: a radio frequency signal is coupled into the plasma via a probe or antenna, excites it to oscillate, and the response is evaluated through a mathematical model. The majority of APRS probes are invasive and perturb the plasma by their physical presence. The planar Multipole Resonance Probe (pMRP) solves this problem: it can be integrated into the chamber wall and minimizes the perturbation. Previous work has studied the pMRP in the frame of the Drude model, but it misses important effects like collision-…
For a magnetised plasma in a straight magnetic guide field, we derive a set of four-dimensional kinetic equations, which can capture electromagnetic turbulence in the drift kinetic limit. To do so, we start from the gyrokinetic equations, employ a Laguerre decomposition in the perpendicular velocity direction, retain only the dominant gyroaverage contributions and only the first two Laguerre moments that source the electromagnetic fluctuations. The model conserves free energy, and can describe electromagnetic turbulence for a plasma at the transition between fluid and gyrokinetic regimes ($k_\…
The existence and properties of phase-space structures in current-carrying pair plasmas is studied by means of the finite amplitude expressions of the pseudo-potential method. Emphasis is given to double layers, solitary structures and periodic waves. The results can be applied to electron-positron plasmas as well as to plasmas containing heavier charged particles with the same mass and opposite charges, such as fullerene ions and dust particles. They can also help to understand numerical simulations that showed the spontaneous formation of phase-space holes in linearly stable regimes.
A kinetic theory for radiation interacting with sound waves in an ultrarelativistic electron-positron plasma is developed. It is shown that the effect of a spatial spectral broadening of the electromagnetic pulse is to introduce a reduction of the growth rates for the decay and modulational instabilities. Such spectral broadening could be due to a finite pulse coherence length, or through the use of random phase filters, and would stabilize the propagation of electromagnetic pulses.
Kinetic ballooning modes (KBM) are widely believed to play a critical role in disruptive dynamics as well as turbulent transport in tokamaks. While the nonlinear evolution of ballooning modes has been proposed as a mechanism for detonation in tokamak plasmas, the role of kinetic effects in such nonlinear dynamics remains largely unexplored. In this work global gyrokinetic simulation results of KBM nonlinear behavior are presented. Instead of the finite-time singularity predicted by ideal MHD theory, the kinetic instability is shown to develop into an intermediate nonlinear regime of exponentia…
The dissipation mechanism of the magnetic energy in turbulent collisionless space and astrophysical plasmas is still not well understood. Its investigation requires efficient kinetic simulations of the energy transfer in collisionless plasma turbulence. In this respect, hybrid-kinetic simulations, in which ions are treated as particles and electrons as an inertial fluid, have begun to attract a significant interest recently. Hybrid-kinetic models describe both ion- and electron scale processes by ignoring electron kinetic effects so that they are computationally much less demanding compared to…
Every second millions of small meteoroids enter the Earth's atmosphere producing dense plasmas. Radars easily detect these plasmas and researchers use this data to characterize both the meteoroids and the atmosphere. This paper develops a first-principle kinetic theory describing the behavior of particles, ablated from a fast-moving meteoroid, that colliside with the atmospheric molecules. This theory produces analytic expressions describing the spatial structure and velocity distributions of ions and neutrals near the ablating meteoroid. This analytical model will serve as a basis for a more …
A careful study of plasma-material interactions is essential to understand and improve the operation of devices where plasma contacts a wall. Key contributions of this work include (i) novel continuum kinetic algorithms with novel boundary conditions that directly discretize the Vlasov/Boltzmann equation using the discontinuous Galerkin method, (ii) fundamental studies of a plasma sheath physics with collisions, ionization, and physics-based wall emission, and (iii) theoretical and numerical studies of the linear growth and nonlinear saturation of the kinetic Weibel instability, including its …
Active plasma resonance spectroscopy (APRS) refers to a class of plasma diagnostic methods that use the ability of plasma to resonate at or near the electron plasma frequency for diagnostic purposes. The planar multipole resonance probe (pMRP) is an optimized realization of APRS. It has a non-invasive structure and allows simultaneous measurement of the electron density, electron temperature, and electron-neutral collision frequency. Previous work has investigated the pMRP through the Drude model and collision-less kinetic model. The Drude model misses important kinetic effects such as collisi…
The dispersion relation of kinetic Alfvén wave in inertial regime is studied in a three component non-degenerate streaming plasma. A lin- ear dispersion relation using fluid- Vlasov equation for quantum plasma is also derived. The quantum correction CQ raised due to the insertion of Bohm potential in Vlasov model causes the suppression in the Alfven wave frequency and the growth rates of instability. A number of analytical expressions are derived for various modes of propagation. It is also found that many system parameters, i.e, streaming velocity, dust charge, num- ber density and quantum co…
The kinetic origin of resonance phenomena in capacitively coupled radio frequency plasmas is discovered based on particle-based numerical simulations. The analysis of the spatio-temporal distributions of plasma parameters such as the densities of hot and cold electrons, as well as the conduction and displacement currents reveals the mechanism of the formation of multiple electron beams during sheath expansion. The interplay between highly energetic beam electrons and low energetic bulk electrons is identified as the physical origin of the excitation of harmonics in the current.
A linearised kinetic equation describing electrostatic perturbations of a Maxwellian equilibrium in a weakly collisional plasma forced by a random source is considered. The problem is treated as a kinetic analogue of the Langevin equation and the corresponding fluctuation-dissipation theorem is derived. This kinetic fluctuation-dissipation theorem reduces to the standard "fluid" one in the regime where the Landau damping rate is small and the system has no real frequency; in this case the simplest possible Landau-fluid closure of the kinetic equation coincides with the standard Langevin equati…
We compare, in an extensive and systematic way, linear theory results obtained with the hybrid (ion-kinetic and electron-fluid), the gyrokinetic and the fully-kinetic plasma models. We present a test case with parameters that are relevant for solar wind turbulence at small scales, which is a topic now recognized to need a kinetic treatment, to a certain extent. We comment on the comparison of low-frequency single modes (Alfvén/ion-cyclotron, ion-acoustic, and fast modes) for a wide range of propagation angles, and on the overall spectral properties of the linear operators, for quasi-perpendicu…
Many-particle QED is applied to kinetic theory of radiative processes in many- component plasmas with relativistic electrons and nonrelativistic heavy particles. Within the framework of nonequilibrium Green's function technique, transport and mass-shell equations for fluctuations of the electromagnetic field are obtained. We show that the transverse field correlation functions can be decomposed into sharply peaked (non-Lorentzian) parts that describe resonant (propagating) photons and off-shell parts corresponding to virtual photons in plasmas. Analogous decomposi- tions are found for the long…
Kinetic instabilities in a dense plasma of a continuous ECR discharge in a mirror magnetic trap at the GISMO setup are studied. We experimentally define unstable regimes and corresponding plasma parameters, where the excitation of electromagnetic emission is observed, accompanied by the precipitation of energetic electrons from the magnetic trap. Comprehensive experimental study of the precipitating electron energy distribution and plasma electromagnetic emission spectra, together with theoretical estimates of the cyclotron instability increment proves that under the experimental conditions th…
The structure of Langmuir plasma waves carrying a finite angular orbital momentum is revised in the paraxial optics approximation. It is shown that the kinetic effects related to higher-order momenta of the electron distribution function lead to coupling of Laguerre-Gaussian modes and result in modification of the wave dispersion and damping. The theoretical analysis is compared to the three-dimensional particle-in-cell numerical simulations for a mode with orbital momentum l = 2. It is demonstrated that propagation of such a plasma wave is accompanied with generation of quasi-static axial and…
Using the Langevin approach and the multiscale technique, a kinetic theory of the time and space nonlocal fluctuations in the collisional plasma is constructed. In local equilibrium a generalized version of the Callen-Welton theorem is derived. It is shown that not only the dissipation but also the time and space derivatives of the dispersion determine the amplitude and the width of the spectrum lines of the electrostatic field fluctuations, as well as the form factor. There appear significant differences with respect to the non-uniform plasma. In the kinetic regime the form factor is more sen…
We describe a systematic development of kinetic entropy as a diagnostic in fully kinetic particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations and use it to interpret plasma physics processes in heliospheric, planetary, and astrophysical systems. First, we calculate kinetic entropy in two forms -- the ``combinatorial'' form related to the logarithm of the number of microstates per macrostate and the ``continuous'' form related to $f \ln f$, where $f$ is the particle distribution function. We discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each and discuss subtleties about implementing them in PIC codes. Using collis…
We investigate the small but finite amplitude solitary Kinetic Alfvén waves (KAWs) in low $β$ plasmas with superthermal electrons modeled by a kappa-type distribution. A nonlinear Korteweg-de Vries (KdV) equation describing the evolution of KAWs is derived by using the standard reductive perturbation method. Examining the dependence of the nonlinear and dispersion coefficients of the KdV equation on the superthermal parameter $κ$, plasma $β$ and obliqueness of propagation, we show that these parameters may change substantially the shape and size of solitary KAW pulses. Only sub-Alfvénic, compr…
We present a self-consistent kinetic description of an electron-positron-photon ($e^-e^+γ$) plasma generated from vacuum in a focal spot of counterpropagating laser pulses. We rely on a model of purely time-dependent external electric field, but properly take into account quantum radiation from plasma, as well as the semiclassical internal (plasma) field. To achieve this goal we derive a system of coupled kinetic equations for the electron, positron, and photon plasma species supplemented with Maxwell equation for the internal electric field. Quantum radiation is included systematically by tak…
We present an ion kinetic model describing the ignition and burn of the deuterium-tritium fuel of inertial fusion targets. The analysis of the underlying physical model enables us to develop efficient numerical methods to simulate the creation, transport and collisional relaxation of fusion reaction products (alpha-particles) at a kinetic level. A two-energy-scale approach leads to a self-consistent modeling of the coupling between suprathermal alpha-particles and the thermal bulk of the imploding plasma. This method provides an accurate numerical treatment of energy deposition and transport p…
The kinetic theory of $\mathrm{sech}^2 x$-type electron holes is studied. The potential of the electron holes is solved in the weak amplitude limit by the pseudo-potential method. We investigate the existence condition of the $\mathrm{sech}^2 x$ electron holes. It indicates that the derivatives of trapped and untrapped distributions at the separatrix play significant roles in determining the potential profile. The theory is then applied to the Kappa-distributed plasmas. The amplitude and width of the $\mathrm{sech}^2 x$ electron holes are analyzed. Finally, the theoretical results are verified…
Recent laboratory experiments with laser-produced plasmas have observed and studied a number of fundamental physical processes relevant to magnetized astrophysical plasmas, including magnetic reconnection, collisionless shocks, and magnetic field generation by Weibel instability, opening up new experimental platforms for laboratory astrophysics. We develop a fully kinetic simulation model for first-principles simulation of these systems including the dynamics of magnetic fields---magnetic field generation by the Biermann battery effect or Weibel instability; advection by the ion flow, Hall eff…
Sustained interpenetrating plasma flows for the investigation of late time kinetic instability evolution
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory（劳伦斯利弗莫尔国家实验室）；Massachusetts Institute of Technology（麻省理工学院）；Dartmouth College（达特茅斯学院）；Instituto de Investigaciones Energéticas y Aplicaciones Industriales（能源研究与工业应用研究所）
Strong collisional shocks in multi-ion plasmas are featured in many high-energy-density environments, including Inertial Confinement Fusion (ICF) implosions. However, their basic structure and its dependence on key parameters (e.g., the Mach number and the plasma ion composition) are poorly understood, and controversies in that regard remain in the literature. Using a high-fidelity Vlasov-Fokker-Planck code, iFP, and direct comparisons to multi-ion hydrodynamic simulations and semi-analytic predictions, we critically examine steady-state planar shocks in D-3He plasmas and put forward a resolut…
We have considered linear kinetic theory including the electron spin properties in a magnetized plasma. The starting point is a mean field Vlasov-like equation, derived from a fully quantum mechanical treatment, where effects from the electron spin precession and the magnetic dipole force is taken into account. The general conductivity tensor is derived, including both the free current contribution, as well as the magnetization current associated with the spin contribution. We conclude the paper with an extensive discussion of the quantum-mechanical boundary where we list parameter conditions …
A largely unsolved theoretical issue in controlled fusion research is the consistent \textit{kinetic} treatment of slowly-time varying plasma states occurring in collisionless and magnetized axisymmetric plasmas. The phenomenology may include finite pressure anisotropies as well as strong toroidal and poloidal differential rotation, characteristic of Tokamak plasmas. Despite the fact that physical phenomena occurring in fusion plasmas depend fundamentally on the microscopic particle phase-space dynamics, their consistent kinetic treatment remains still essentially unchalleged to date. The goal…
The fundamental higher-order Landau plasma modes are known to be generally heavily damped. We show that these modes for the ion component in a weakly ionized plasma can be substantially modified by ion-neutral collisions and a dc electric field driving ion flow so that some of them can become unstable. This instability is expected to naturally occur in presheaths of gas discharges at sufficiently small pressures and thus affect sheaths and discharge structures.
A uniform in space, oscillatory in time plasma equilibrium sustained by a time-dependent current density is analytically and numerically studied resorting to particle-in-cell simulations. The dispersion relation is derived from the Vlasov equation for oscillating equilibrium distribution functions, and used to demonstrate that the plasma has an infinite number of unstable kinetic modes. This instability represents a new kinetic mechanism for the decay of the initial mode of infinite wavelength (or equivalently null wavenumber), for which no classical wave breaking or Landau damping exists. The…
Within the framework of quasilinear theory it has been found that when radio bursts of III type are generated by the inhomogeneous system of electron beam - solar wind plasma, only time of development of the primary stage of instability, i.e., agnetohydrodynamic, is more than the total time of relaxation of an electron beam derived within the homogeneous model. During the development of hydrodynamic instability the electron beam is spread from the Sun to the distance of 4 astonomical unities. The hydrodynamic stage is followed by the development of kinetic instability leading, ultimately, to t…
