Linear and nonlinear properties of Rao-dust-Alfv\'en waves in magnetized plasmas

The linear and nonlinear properties of the Rao-dust-magnetohydrodynamic (R-D-MHD) waves in a dusty magnetoplasma are studied. By employing the inertialess electron equation of motion, inertial ion equation of motion, Amp\`ere's law, Faraday's law, and the continuity equation in a plasma with immobile charged dust grains, the linear and nonlinear propagation of two-dimensional R-D-MHD waves are investigated. In the linear regime, the existence of immobile dust grains produces the Rao cutoff frequency, which is proportional to the dust charge density and the ion gyrofrequency. On the other hand, the dynamics of an amplitude modulated R-D-MHD waves is governed by the cubic nonlinear Schroedinger equation. The latter has been derived by using the reductive perturbation technique and the two-timescale analysis which accounts for the harmonic generation nonlinearity in plasmas. The stability of the modulated wave envelope against non-resonant perturbations is studied. Finally, the possibility of localized envelope excitations is discussed.Comment: 30 pages, 8 figures, to appear in Physics of Plasma

Spinodal decomposition: An alternate mechanism of phase conversion

The scenario of homogeneous nucleation is investigated for a first order quark-hadron phase transition in a rapidly expanding background of quark gluon plasma. It is found that significant supercooling is possible before hadronization begins. This study also suggests that spinodal decomposition competes with nucleation and may provide an alternative mechanism for phase conversion.Comment: LaTeX, 4 pages with 3 Postscript figures. Talk given at International Conference on Physics and Astrophysics of Quark Gluon Plasma (ICPAQGP 2001), Nov. 26-30, 2001, Jaipur, Indi

Nonlinear wave-wave interactions in quantum plasmas

Wave-wave interaction in plasmas is a topic of important research since the 16th century. The formation of Langmuir solitons through the coupling of high-frequency (hf) Langmuir and low-frequency (lf) ion-acoustic waves, is one of the most interesting features in the context of turbulence in modern plasma physics. Moreover, quantum plasmas, which are ubiquitous in ultrasmall electronic devices, micromechanical systems as well as in dense astrophysical environments are a topic of current research. In the light of notable interests in such quantum plasmas, we present here a theoretical investigation on the nonlinear interaction of quantum Langmuir waves (QLWs) and quantum ion-acoustic waves (QIAWs), which are governed by the one-dimensional quantum Zakharov equations (QZEs). It is shown that a transition to spatiotemporal chaos (STC) occurs when the length scale of excitation of linear modes is larger than that of the most unstable ones. Such length scale is, however, to be larger (compared to the classical one) in presence of the quantum tunneling effect. The latter induces strong QIAW emission leading to the occurrence of collision and fusion among the patterns at an earlier time than the classical case. Moreover, numerical simulation of the QZEs reveals that many solitary patterns can be excited and saturated through the modulational instability (MI) of unstable harmonic modes. In a longer time, these solitons are seen to appear in the state of STC due to strong QIAW emission as well as by the collision and fusion in stochastic motion. The energy in the system is thus strongly redistributed, which may switch on the onset of Langmuir turbulence in quantum plasmas.Comment: 6 pages, 6 figures (To appear in AIP Conf. Proceedings 2010

Modulational instability in asymmetric coupled wave functions

The evolution of the amplitude of two nonlinearly interacting waves is considered, via a set of coupled nonlinear Schroedinger-type equations. The dynamical profile is determined by the wave dispersion laws (i.e. the group velocities and the GVD terms) and the nonlinearity and coupling coefficients, on which no assumption is made. A generalized dispersion relation is obtained, relating the frequency and wave-number of a small perturbation around a coupled monochromatic (Stokes') wave solution. Explicitly stability criteria are obtained. The analysis reveals a number of possibilities. Two (individually) stable systems may be destabilized due to coupling. Unstable systems may, when coupled, present an enhanced instability growth rate, for an extended wave number range of values. Distinct unstable wavenumber windows may arise simultaneously.Comment: NEXT Sigma-Phi Statistical Physics Conference (2005, Kolymbari, Greece) Proceedings, submitted; v.2 is a shorter version of the text in v.1 (more detailed and somehow more explanatory, yet abbreviated due to submission regulations); some typos corrected as wel

Nonlinear modulation of transverse dust lattice waves in complex plasma crystals

The occurrence of the modulational instability (MI) in transverse dust lattice waves propagating in a one-dimensional dusty plasma crystal is investigated. The amplitude modulation mechanism, which is related to the intrinsic nonlinearity of the sheath electric field, is shown to destabilize the carrier wave under certain conditions, possibly leading to the formation of localized envelope excitations. Explicit expressions for the instability growth rate and threshold are presented and discussed.Comment: 5 pages, no figures; submitted to Physics of Plasma

Nonlinear theory of solitary waves associated with longitudinal particle motion in lattices - Application to longitudinal grain oscillations in a dust crystal

The nonlinear aspects of longitudinal motion of interacting point masses in a lattice are revisited, with emphasis on the paradigm of charged dust grains in a dusty plasma (DP) crystal. Different types of localized excitations, predicted by nonlinear wave theories, are reviewed and conditions for their occurrence (and characteristics) in DP crystals are discussed. Making use of a general formulation, allowing for an arbitrary (e.g. the Debye electrostatic or else) analytic potential form $\phi(r)$ and arbitrarily long site-to-site range of interactions, it is shown that dust-crystals support nonlinear kink-shaped localized excitations propagating at velocities above the characteristic DP lattice sound speed $v_0$. Both compressive and rarefactive kink-type excitations are predicted, depending on the physical parameter values, which represent pulse- (shock-)like coherent structures for the dust grain relative displacement. Furthermore, the existence of breather-type localized oscillations, envelope-modulated wavepackets and shocks is established. The relation to previous results on atomic chains as well as to experimental results on strongly-coupled dust layers in gas discharge plasmas is discussed.Comment: 21 pages, 12 figures, to appear in Eur. Phys. J.

Incoherent interaction of light with electron-acoustic waves

The equations governing the interaction between incoherent light and electron-acoustic waves are presented. The modulational instability properties of the system are studied, and the effect of partially coherent light is discussed. It is shown that partial coherence of the light suppresses the modulational instability. However, short wavelength perturbations are less affected, and will therefore dominate in, e.g. pulse filamentation. The results may be of importance to space plasmas and laser-plasma systems.Comment: 8 pages, 1 figure, to appear in Phys. Plasma

Dust acoustic wave in a strongly magnetized pair-dust plasma

The existence of the dust acoustic wave (DAW) in a strongly magnetized electron-positron (pair)-dust plasma is demonstrated. In the DAW, the restoring force comes from the pressure of inertialess electrons and positrons, and the dust mass provides the inertia. The waves could be of interest in astrophysical settings such as the supernovae and pulsars, as well as in cluster explosions by intense laser beams in laboratory plasmas.Comment: 6 pages, revtex