Low frequency electromagnetic radiation coming from gravitational waves generated by neutron stars

We investigate the possibility of observing very low frequency (VLF) electromagnetic radiation produced from the vacuum by gravitational waves. We review the calculations leading to the possibility of vacuum conversion of gravitational waves into electromagnetic waves and show how this process evades the well-known prohibition against particle production from gravitational waves. Using Newman-Penrose scalars, we estimate the luminosity of this proposed electromagnetic counterpart radiation coming from gravitational waves produced by neutron star oscillations. The detection of electromagnetic counterpart radiation would provide an indirect way of observing gravitational radiation with future spacecraft missions, especially lunar orbiting probes.Comment: 16 pages revtex, no figures, 1 table. Version published in PR

Resonant interaction between gravitational waves, electromagnetic waves and plasma flows

In magnetized plasmas gravitational and electromagnetic waves may interact coherently and exchange energy between themselves and with plasma flows. We derive the wave interaction equations for these processes in the case of waves propagating perpendicular or parallel to the plasma background magnetic field. In the latter case, the electromagnetic waves are taken to be circularly polarized waves of arbitrary amplitude. We allow for a background drift flow of the plasma components which increases the number of possible evolution scenarios. The interaction equations are solved analytically and the characteristic time scales for conversion between gravitational and electromagnetic waves are found. In particular, it is shown that in the presence of a drift flow there are explosive instabilities resulting in the generation of gravitational and electromagnetic waves. Conversely, we show that energetic waves can interact to accelerate particles and thereby \emph{produce} a drift flow. The relevance of these results for astrophysical and cosmological plasmas is discussed.Comment: 12 pages, 1 figure, typos corrected and numerical example adde

Negative group velocity and three-wave mixing in dielectric crystals

Extraordinary features of optical parametric amplification of Stokes electromagnetic waves are investigated, which originate from three-wave mixing of two ordinary electromagnetic and one backward phonon wave with negative group velocity. A similarity with the counterpart in the negative-index plasmonic metamaterials and differences with those utilizing contra-propagating ordinary electromagnetic waves as well as electromagnetic and acoustic phonon waves are shown. They stem from backwardness of optical phonons with negative dispersion. Nonlinear-optical photonic devices with the properties similar to those predicted for the negative-index metamaterials are proposed.Comment: 8 pages, 2 figure

Kinetic theory of electromagnetic ion waves in relativistic plasmas

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.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figures, to appear in Physics of Plasma

Axion-Electromagnetic Waves

We extend the duality symmetry between the electric and the magnetic fields to the case in which an additional axion-like term is present, and we derive the set of Maxwell's equations that preserves this symmetry. This new set of equations allows for a gauge symmetry extending the ordinary symmetry in the classical electrodynamics. We obtain explicit solutions for the new set of equations in the absence of external sources, and we discuss the implications of a new internal symmetry between the axion field and the electromagnetic gauge potential.Comment: 11pages, accepted for publication on Modern Physics Letters A 28, 35 (2013

Nonreciprocal Electromagnetic Scattering from a Periodically Space-Time Modulated Slab and Application to a Quasisonic Isolator

Scattering of obliquely incident electromagnetic waves from periodically space-time modulated slabs is investigated. It is shown that such structures operate as nonreciprocal harmonic generators and spatial-frequency filters. For oblique incidences, low-frequency harmonics are filtered out in the form of surface waves, while high-frequency harmonics are transmitted as space waves. In the quasisonic regime, where the velocity of the space-time modulation is close to the velocity of the electromagnetic waves in the background medium, the incident wave is strongly coupled to space-time harmonics in the forward direction, while in the backward direction it exhibits low coupling to other harmonics. This nonreciprocity is leveraged for the realization of an electromagnetic isolator in the quasisonic regime and is experimentally demonstrated at microwave frequencies