Excitation of large amplitude electron plasma waves by laser

Abstract

A hydrodynamic description is used to derive a nonlinear wave equation in the geometry of the capacitor model. For a streaming cold plasma the equation can be solved analytically. For the warm plasma case numerical results of high amplitude waves and wave breaking are presented. Flat minima and peaked maxima of the electron density and the oscillatory velocity are the most characteristic features of highly nonlinear electron waves. Their Bohm–Gross dispersion relation is modified by self-interaction of the fundamental mode.