Collision-Induced Instabilities near Electron Cyclotron Harmonics in Plasma

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Abstract
Instabilities of longitudinal wave and transverse wave in plasma are discussed by using the Boltzmann equation containing a collision term between an electron and massive particles. It is assumed that the plasma is homogeneous and the unperturbed distribution function in velocity space f 0 is δ-functional, i.e. f 0 ∝δ( v - v 0 ), and the collision frequency ν varies as ν∝ v h . In the case of the propagation perpendicular to the magnetic field, a collision-induced instability occurs near electron cyclotron harmonics (ω≈ n ω c ) when the condition h > N is satisfied, where N =2 n +1 for extraordinary wave and N =2 n +3 for ordinary wave, and the maximum growth rate (ω i ) max is equal to {( h - N )/ N }ν for both waves.