Section 14) Electromagnetic waves

perpendicular to 0
a) Ordinary waves, 1 0
(1) The geometry for this can be seen by
(where 0 ):
(2) The equation for this is:
(a) 2 = 2 + 2 2
(3) An ordinary wave is the wave which
is not affected by the magnetic field.
If you recall from Sec. 12. a.1. the
equation is the same when 0 = 0.
b) Extraordinary Wave, 1 0
(1) If 1 is perpendicular to 0 , the
electron motion will be affected by
0 . Waves with 1 0 tend to
elliptically polarized instead of plane
polarized. This means that as this
kind of wave propagates into a
plasma, it develops a component
along , thus becoming partly
longitudinal and partly transverse.
1 has both x and y components.

(2) The dispersion relation below, for

an extraordinary wave, is an electromagnetic wave partly transverse and partly
longitudinal, which propagates perpendicular to 0 with 1 0
(a)

2 2
2

2
2

= 1

2 2 2

2
2 2

Section 15) Cutoffs and Resonances

a) Cutoff
(1) A cutoff occurs in a plasma when the index of refraction goes to zero, (when the
wavelength becomes infinite because = / =

2
,.

(2) There are two different signs which will give a cutoff frequency 2 = 2 = 0
(a) Two roots of the quadratic:
1
2
1
[
2

1\2

(i) = [ + (2 + 42 )
(ii) =

1\2

+ (2 + 42 )

1. Using the convention that is always positive; waves going in the

direction will be described by a negative . (Right hand and left hand
cutoffs)
b) Resonance
(1) A resonance occurs when the index of rarefaction becomes infinite, IE when the
wavelength becomes zero.

(2) The resonance is found by setting equal to infinityimplies that so that a

resonance occurs at a point in the plasma where
(a) 2 = 2 + 2 = 2
(b) As a wave of given approaches the resonance point, both its phase velocity and its
group velocity approach zero, and the wave energy is converted into upper hybrid
oscillations. At this point, the wave loses its electromagnetic character and becomes
an electrostatic oscillation.
Section 16) Electromagnetic waves parallel to 0
a) If k is along z axis, and E has both transverse components of and
(1) Dispersion relations are thus:
(a) 2 =
(b) 2 =

2 2
2
2 2
2

= 1
= 1

2 2

1( )
2 2

1+( )

R wave
L wave

(i) These waves turn out to be circularly polarized, meaning right hand circular
polarization and left hand circular polarization. The electric field vector rotates
clockwise as views along the direction of 0 for the R wave, and
counterclockwise for the L wave.
Section 17) Faraday rotation
a) A plane-polarized wave set along a magnetic field in a plasma will suffer a rotation of its
plane of polarization
b) This happens due to the different speeds of the waves. This can be understood in terms of
the R and L waves. Because the R wave has a higher velocity at the same frequency as an L
wave, it is faster. A plane polarized wave is basically the sum of L and R waves. So even
though after N cycles, the and the vectors will return to their initial positions, the
different velocities mean that after a distance , they will have gone a different number of
cycles. This can be visualized by:
c)

Section 18) Hydromagnetic waves

a) Concerning low-frequency ion oscillations in the presence of magnetic fields, we shall only
consider two kinds: the Hydromagnetic wave along 0 (Alfven wave) and the magnetosonic
wave.
b) Hydromagnetic
(1) Phase velocity in a dielectric medium
(a)

1
( )2

1/2

= = (

0
1/2
0 )

(2) Alfven velocity is thus

(a) (

1/2
)
0

(b) This is a characteristic velocity at which perturbations of the lines of force travels.
(i) The dielectric constant for a medium can thus be represented by:
1. = 1 + ( 2 /2 )

(3) What physically happens in an Alfven wave:

(a) Recalling that an Alfven wave is an electromagnetic wave with a fluctuating
magnetic field 1 given by 1 = 1 . 1 when added to 0 givens the lines of
force a sinusoidal ripple. Since the ripple in the field is moving at the phase velocity
/, the line of force is also moving downward at the point indicated. Thus the fluid
and the field lines oscillate together as if the particles were stuck to the lines. The
lines of force act as if they are mass-loaded strings under tension, and an Alfven
wave can be regarded as the propagating disturbance occurring when the strings
are plucked.

Section 19) Magnetosonic waves

a) Now we are dealing with low frequency electromagnetic waves traveling across 0 . Now
that 1 0 drifts lie along k, the plasma will be compressed and released in the course of
the oscillation. Essentially, it is an acoustic wave in which the compressions and rarefactions
are produced not by motions along , but by . The dispersion relation is below:
(1)

2
2

2
2 +

= 2 (

2
2 +