Propagation of terahertz electromagnetic waves in a magnetized plasma with inhomogeneous electron density and collision frequency

Abstract

This study theoretically analyzes the propagation properties of terahertz (THz) electromagnetic waves in a magnetized plasma that is inhomogeneous in both collision frequency and electron density. Three parabolic profiles are adopted to describe the inhomogeneity of these two parameters in the plasma slab. Numerical calculation results show that when a magnetic field is applied, an absorption valley appears near the middle of the absorption peak. The characteristics of the absorption spectra are affected by two factors: (1) the parameters in the plasma's first layer, which is the border between the air and the plasma and (2) the gradient of the parameters across the entire plasma. Specifically, a more substantial difference between the inhomogeneous plasma and the uniform plasma corresponds to a greater difference between the two absorption spectra. In addition, electron density, plasma thickness, and collision frequency also play important roles in the propagation.