Nonlinear decay of a propagating lower-hybrid wave in a plasma

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Abstract
This paper studies the nonlinear coupling between a large amplitude propagating lower-hybrid wave and two electromagnetic waves in a plasma. Using a two-fluid model and Vlasov and Maxwell's equations, we derive a dispersion relation governing this three-wave interaction process. It is shown that a finite wavenumber lower-hybrid pump can decay into a whistler and a kinetic Alfvén wave. Calculations of the threshold condition suggest that this decay process may occur both in the laboratory and in the ionosphere.