Terahertz plasma oscillations and dissipating solitary pulses in electron–hole semiconductor plasmas

Abstract

Abstract Linearized modes of oscillation in terahertz range and weakly dissipating electrostatic solitary pulses are studied in semiconductor plasmas in the framework of quantum hydrodynamics. Many-particle effect is expressed in the local density approximation with the help of exchange-correlation potential and the species space charge effect is included through Poisson’s equation. Using reductive perturbation technique, damped Korteweg de-Vries equations is derived with a linear damping term arising due to electron (hole)–phonon collisions. Time evolution of solitary acoustic pulses is presented analytically and numerically. Typical values corresponding to GaAs, GaSb, InP and GaN semiconductors are used for parametric analysis and pulse profile with collision-induced dissipation and quantum effects of statistical pressure, Bohm potential and exchange-correlation potential. The pulses are stable and can withstand perturbations for a considerable time before damping.