Large amplitude solitary waves in space plasmas

The First part of this thesis, comprising the Chapters 1-6, deals with nonlinear electro-static waves. In Chapter 1 we introduce the different methods used in the study of onlinear waves, i.e. the reductive perturbation and Sagdeev pseudopotential methods. In Chapter 2 we then develop the alternative fluid-dynamic McKenzie approach. We derive a general analytic theory for large amplitude stationary electrostatic solitary waves in multispecies plasmas. In the following chapters we apply these general results to certain specific examples. In two-electron plasmas we consider electron-acoustic solitary waves in Chapter 3 and ion-acoustic solitons in Chapter 4. Then we consider dusty plasmas, which allow ion-acoustic and dust-acoustic solitary waves. The former are analogous to those studied in two-electron plasmas and the latter are the subject of Chapter 5. In Chapter 6 our formalism is extended to include self-gravitation, and applied to study self-gravitational solitons in a two-species neutral molecular cloud. The second part of this thesis, i.e. the Chapters 7-10, is concerned with nonlinear electromagnetic modes. In Chapter 7 a general multispecies theoretical framework for large amplitude stationary electromagnetic solitary waves in cold plasmas is developed. In Chapter 8 this is applied to large amplitude electromagnetic solitons in pair plasmas, propagating obliquely to the magnetic field. In ordinary hydrogen plasmas at parallel propagation we find so-called oscillitons, having both stationary amplitude and phase. These are the subject of Chapter 9. In Chapter 10 we study the slow amplitude modulation of electromagnetic waves in pair plasmas, due to coupling with various slow changes in the presence of the wave field. A third part, Chapters 11-13, deals with some dusty plasma problems. The influence of a drift of the dust with respect to the plasma on magnetosonic modes in dusty plasmas is studied in Chapter 11. We focus on dust distributions in Chapter 12 and charge fluctuations in Chapter 13.

Author dc:creator

• Cattaert, Tom

Contributors dc:contributor

• Verheest, Frank

Statement dc:rights

• info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess

Language dc:language

und

Identifier

https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/472050
http://doi.org/1854/5308
https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/472050/file/1878148

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:archive.ugent.be:472050