Nonlinear screening of dust grains and structurization of dusty plasma

A review of theoretical ideas on the physics of structurization instability of a homogeneous dusty plasma, i.e., the formation of zones with elevated and depressed density of dust grains and their arrangement into different structures observed in laboratory plasma under microgravity conditions, is presented. Theoretical models of compact dust structures that can form in the nonlinear stage of structurization instability, as well as models of a system of voids (both surrounding a compact structure and formed in the center of the structure), are discussed. Two types of structures with very different dimensions are possible, namely, those smaller or larger than the characteristic mean free path of ions in the plasma flow. Both of them are characterized by relatively regular distributions of dust grains; however, the first ones usually require external confinement, while the structures of the second type can be self-sustained (which is of particular interest). In this review, they are called dust clusters and self-organized dust structures, respectively. Both types of the structures are characterized by new physical processes that take place only in the presence of the dust component. The role of nonlinearities in the screening of highly charged dust grains that are often observed in modern laboratory experiments turns out to be great, but these nonlinearities have not received adequate study as of yet. Although structurization takes place upon both linear and nonlinear screening, it can be substantially different under laboratory and astrophysical conditions. Studies on the nonlinear screening of large charges in plasma began several decades ago; however, up to now, this effect was usually disregarded when interpreting the processes occurring in laboratory dusty plasma. One of the aims of the present review was to demonstrate the possibility of describing the nonlinear screening of individual grains and take it into account with the help of the basic equations for the equilibrium between plasma components when analyzing equilibrium structures. The effect of plasma screening nonlinearity on both the diffusion processes and the forces of dust drag by plasma fluxes is analyzed. It is shown how self-organized dust structures form in these processes. In the limit of very small dust grain charges, the forces acting on the dusty plasma components and the set of basic equations for stationary dust structures (with allowance for nonlinear screening) take a standard form. New qualitative effects, such as the suppression of diffusion due to ion scattering from dust grains and the formation of structures of different configurations, are described. A detailed comparison with previous results is performed. It is shown that the solution of basic nonlinear equations for dust structures yields new qualitative effects. A number of new effects to be studied in future dusty plasma experiments with the formation of structures in spherical chambers are predicted (it is assumed that diffusion will play a significant role under microgravity conditions). Recent ground-based experiments, as well as experiments carried out onboard the International Space Station, directly confirm the nonlinear character of screening and the significant role played by this nonlinearity in the structurization of dusty plasma. Experiments on the formation of structures consisting of smaller dust grains within structures formed of larger grains are discussed. It is shown that those experiments can be interpreted only using the concept of nonlinear screening.     

Nonisothermal theory of the positive column of an electric discharge in the axial magnetic field

A nonisothermal model of the positive column allowing for electron energy balance is analyzed. The influence of the axial magnetic field on the characteristics of the cylindrical positive column of a low-pressure discharge is investigated in the hydrodynamic approximation. It is shown that the magnetic field affects the plasma density distribution, plasma velocity, and electron energies. The radial dependences of the plasma density, electron energy, and plasma velocity, as well as the azimuthal velocities of electrons and ions, are calculated for helium at different values of the magnetic field strength. It is established that inertia should be taken into account in the equations for the azimuthal motion of electrons and ions. The results obtained in the hydrodynamic approximation differ significantly from those obtained in the framework of the common diffusion model of the positive column in the axial magnetic field. It is shown that the distributions of the plasma density and radial plasma velocity in the greater part of the positive column tend to those obtained in the diffusion approximation at higher values of the axial magnetic field and gas density, although substantial differences remain in the near-wall region.     

Electrostatic Solitary Pulses in a Dusty Electronegative Magnetoplasma

The nonlinear characteristics of dust-electron-acoustic (DEA) waves in a dusty electronegative magnetoplasma system consisting of nonextensive hot electrons, inertial cold electrons, positively charged static ions, and negatively charged immobile dust grains has been investigated. In this observation, the well-known reductive perturbation technique is employed to determine different types of nonlinear dynamical equations, namely, magnetized Korteweg–de Vries (KdV), magnetized modified KdV (mKdV), and magnetized Gardner equations. The stationary solitary wave and double layer solution of these three equations, which describe the characteristics of solitary waves and double layers of DEA waves, are obtained and numerically analyzed. It is noticed that various plasma parameters (viz., hot electron nonextensivity, positive ion-to-cold electron number density ratio, dust-to-cold electron number density ratio, etc.) significantly affect the basic properties of DEA solitary waves (DEASWs) and Gardner solitons (GSs). The prodigious results found from this theoretical investigation may be useful for researchers to investigate the nonlinear structures in various space and laboratory plasmas.     

Small-amplitude shock waves and double layers in dusty plasmas with opposite polarity charged dust grains

Theoretical investigation is carried out for understanding the properties of nonlinear dust-acoustic (DA) waves in an unmagnetized dusty plasma whose constituents are massive, micron-sized, positive and negatively charged inertial dust grains along with q (nonextensive) distributed electrons and ions. The reductive perturbation method is employed in order to derive two types of nonlinear dynamical equations, namely, Burgers equation and modified Gardner equation (Gardner equation with dissipative term). They are also numerically analyzed to investigate the basic features (viz., polarity, amplitude, width, etc.) of shock waves and double layers. It has been observed that the effects of nonextensivity, opposite polarity charged dust grains, and different dusty plasma parameters have significantly modified the fundamental properties of shock waves and double layers. The results of this investigation may be used for researches of the nonlinear wave propagation in laboratory and space plasmas.     

Modeling of particle dynamics in a thruster

Numerical solutions to the equations describing the process of ion acceleration in a Hall current plasma accelerator (thruster) are studied. The system itself represents a three-component plasma: neutral atoms, free electrons, and singly-ionized atoms. The ions in the acceleration tract move without collisions, i.e., the length of the free path of ions is larger than that of the acceleration tract, while electrons move in a diffusion mode across the magnetic field. It is shown that in case the Poisson equation for an electric field is used the set of dynamic equations does not have an acoustic peculiarity that appears when solving a quasineutral set when the velocity of the ion flow and the ion-acoustic velocity coincide.     

Influence of electromagnetic radiation on the shock structure formation in complex plasmas

Electromagnetic radiation effects are calculated for the case of the solar radiation spectrum in the vicinity of the Earth. The influence of the photoelectric effect on the propagation of nonlinear waves in complex plasmas is studied when the dust grains acquire large positive charges. Exact solutions to nonlinear equations in the form of steady-state shocks that do not involve electron-ion collisions are found, and the conditions for their existence are obtained. In contrast to the classical collisionless shock waves, the dissipation due to the dust charging involves the interaction of the electrons and ions with the dust grains in the form of microscopic grain currents and the photoelectric current. The nonsteady problem of the evolution of a perturbation and its transformation into a nonlinear wave structure is considered. The evolution of an intense, initially nonmoving region with a constant increased ion density is investigated. It is shown that the evolution of a rather intense nonmoving region with a constant increased ion density can result in the formation of a shock wave. In addition to the compressional wave, a rarefaction region (dilatation wave) appears. The presence of a dilatation wave finally leads to the destruction of the shock structure. The possibility is discussed of the observation of shock waves related to dust charging in the presence of electromagnetic radiation in active rocket experiments, which involve the release of a gaseous substance in the Earth's ionosphere in the form of a high-speed plasma jet at altitudes of 500–600 km.     

Dynamics of plasma−dust structures formed in a trap created in the narrowing of a current channel in a magnetic field

The geometry and dynamics of plasma?dust structures in a longitudinal magnetic field is studied experimentally. The structures are formed in a glow-discharge trap created in the double electric layer produced as a result of discharge narrowing by means of a dielectric insert introduced in the discharge tube. Studies of structures formed in the new type of glow-discharge trap are of interest from the standpoint of future experiments with complex plasmas in superstrong magnetic fields in which the dust component is magnetized. Different types of dielectric inserts were used: conical and plane ones with symmetric and asymmetric apertures. Conditions for the existence of stable dust structures are determined for dust grains of different density and different dispersity. According to the experimental results, the angular velocity of dust rotation is ≥10 s^–1, which is the fastest type of dust motion for all types of discharges in a magnetic field. The rotation is interpreted by analyzing the dynamics of individual dust grains.     

Shock structure formation in dusty plasmas

The problem of the evolution of a perturbation in a dusty plasma and its transformation into a nonlinear wave structure is considered. A computational method that allows one to solve the set of nonlinear evolutionary equations describing variable-charge dust grains, Boltzmann electrons, and inertial ions is developed. Exact steady-state solutions corresponding to ion-acoustic shock structures associated with anomalous dissipation originating from dust grain charging are found taking into account the effect of electron and ion charge separation. The role of this effect increases with the speed of the shock. The evolutions of an initial soliton (which is a steady-state wave solution in a plasma containing dust grains with a constant charge) and an initially immobile perturbation with a constant increased ion density are investigated. In a charge-varying dusty plasma, the soliton evolves into a nonsteady shock wave structure that propagates at a constant speed and whose amplitude decreases with time. The initially immobile perturbation with a constant increased ion density evolves into a shock structure similar to a steady-state shock wave. In the latter case, the compression shock wave is accompanied by a rarefaction region (dilatation wave), which finally leads to the destruction of the shock structure. The solution of the problem of the evolution of a perturbation and its transformation into a shock wave in a charge-varying dusty plasma opens up the possibility of describing real phenomena (such as supernova explosions) and laboratory and active space experiments.     

Ion-acoustic solitons in dusty plasma

The dynamics of dust ion-acoustic solitons is analyzed in a wide range of dusty plasma parameters. The cases of both a positive dust grain charge arising due to the photoelectric effect caused by intense electromagnetic radiation and a negative grain charge established in the absence of electromagnetic radiation are considered. The ranges of plasma parameters and Mach numbers in which ??conservative?? (nondissipative) solitons can exist are determined. It is shown that, in dusty plasma with negatively charged dust grains, both compression and rarefaction solitons can propagate, whereas in plasma with positively charged dust grains, only compression solitons can exist. The evolution of soliton-like compression and rarefaction perturbations is studied by numerically solving the hydrodynamic equations for ions and dust grains, as well as the equation for dust grain charging. The main dissipation mechanisms, such as grain charging, ion absorption by dust grains, momentum exchange between ions and dust grains, and ion-neutral collisions are taken into account. It is shown that the amplitudes of soliton-like compression and rarefaction perturbations decrease in the course of their evolution and their velocities (the Mach numbers) decrease monotonically in time. At any instant of time, the shape of an evolving soliton-like perturbation coincides with the shape of a conservative soliton corresponding to the current value of the Mach number. It is shown that, after the interaction between any types of soliton-like perturbations, their velocities and shapes are restored (with a certain phase shift) to those of the corresponding perturbations propagating without interaction; i.e., they are in fact weakly dissipative solitons.     

Magnetorotational instability of a weakly ionized accretion disk with vertical and azimuthal magnetic fields

Magnetorotational instability of a weakly ionized accretion disk with an admixture of charged dust grains in a magnetic field with the axial and toroidal components is analyzed. The dispersion relation for perturbations perpendicular to the disk plane is derived with allowance for both the Hall current and the finite transverse plasma conductivity. It is shown that dust grains play an important role in the disk magnetic dynamics. Due to the effect of dust grains, the Hall current can reverse its direction as compared to the case of electron-ion plasma. As a result, the instability threshold shifts toward the short-wavelength range. Under certain conditions, electromagnetic fluctuations of any length can become unstable. It is established that the instability criterion for waves of any scale length is satisfied within a finite interval of the density ratio between the dust and electron plasma components. The width of this interval and the instability growth rate as functions of the plasma parameters and the configuration of the magnetic field in the disk are analyzed.     

Potential of a test charge in a dust-electron plasma

The potential of a slowly moving test charge in a positive-dust-electron plasma is calculated taking into account dust grain charge fluctuations, as well as collisions between neutral atoms and electrons and dust grains. The results should be useful for understanding the shielding in a dusty plasma sheath with levitated grains.     

Ion flux associated with an ion-acoustic cnoidal wave in magnetized dusty plasma

The oblique propagation of nonlinear periodic ion-acoustic waves in magnetized dusty plasma is investigated. The equations describing the dynamics of the wave potential in the first and second orders of the perturbation theory are derived, and their nonsecular periodic solutions are found. The average nonlinear ion flux caused by the propagation of a cnoidal wave is estimated. The magnitude and direction of the ion flux are analyzed as functions of the dust charge density and the angle between the wave propagation direction and the magnetic field.     

Dynamics of dust grains in a two-component dusty plasma induced by solar radiation under microgravity conditions

Results are presented from experimental studies of the dynamics of dust grains charged via photoemission under microgravity conditions. The experiments are performed with bronze grains exposed to solar radiation on board the Mir space station. The velocity distribution, temperature, mean charge, and friction and diffusion coefficients of dust grains are determined. An analysis of the data obtained shows that the polarization caused by the separation of opposite charges can significantly affect the transport processes in a two-component dusty plasma consisting of dust grains and the electrons emitted by them.     

Ion-Flow-Induced Excitation of Electrostatic Cyclotron Mode in Magnetized Dusty Plasma

The stability of electrostatic cyclotron mode is investigated in a flowing magnetized dusty plasma in the presence of strong ion–neutral collisions. In the high magnetic field limit, when the dust magnetization becomes important, it is expected that the collective behavior of magnetized dust grains suspended in the near-sheath region substantially influences the dispersion properties of electrostatic modes. The growth/damping of the collective excitation is significantly controlled by such parameters as the ion–neutral collision frequency, Mach number, and magnetic field strength. In our case, the explicit dependence of the Mach number on the magnetic field and collision frequency has been taken into account and possible implications on the stability of the mode is analyzed. Streaming instability of cyclotron modes may be important to understand issues related to the interaction mechanism between dust grains and other associated phenomena like Coulomb crystallization, phase behavior, transport properties, etc., in the relatively strong magnetic field limit, which is currently accessible in the DPD (Kiel University) and MDPX (PSL, Auburn University) experiments.     

Effect of Ion Streaming on Diffusion of Dust Grains in Dissipative System

The presence of strong electric fields in the sheath region of laboratory complex plasma induces an ion drift and perturbs the field around dust grains. The downstream focusing of ions leads to the formation of oscillatory kind of attractive wake potential which superimpose with the normal Debye-Hückel (DH) potential. The structural properties of complex plasma and diffusion coefficient of dust grains in the presence of such a wake potential have been investigated using Langevin dynamics simulation in the subsonic regime of ion flow. The study reveals that the diffusion of dust grains is strongly affected by the ion flow, so that the diffusion changes its character in the wake potential to the DH potential dominant regimes. The dependence of the diffusion coefficient on the parameters, such as the neutral pressure, dust grain size, ion flow velocity, and Coulomb coupling parameter, have been calculated for the subsonic regime by using the Green-Kubo expression, which is based on the integrated velocity autocorrelation function. It is found that the diffusion and the structural property of the system is intimately connected with the interaction potential and significantly get affected in the presence of ion flow in the subsonic regime.     

Nonlocal theory of the spectra of modified ion cyclotron oscillations in a charged plasma produced by gas ionization

The problem of the stability of a charged plasma cylinder in crossed longitudinal magnetic and radial electric fields is considered under the assumption that the plasma electrons are magnetized and distributed uniformly in space and that the plasma ions have a low density and move without collisions. By using the Vlasov and Poisson equations for the electric and magnetic fields of arbitrary strengths and by expanding the radial eigenfunctions in Bessel functions, a dispersion relation is obtained for the modified ion cyclotron frequencies. The dispersion relation obtained is solved for the case of hot plasma electrons. At low ion densities, the oscillation spectra are stable and are described by the families of dispersion curves lying closely around the harmonics of the modified cyclotron frequency (including the zeroth harmonic). At higher ion densities, the dispersion curves for the frequencies of the lowest radial oscillation modes in neighboring families can intersect, leading to instability. The maximum instability growth rate can be several tenths of the modified ion cyclotron frequency.     

Dust grain charges in a nuclear-track plasma and the formation of dynamic vortex dust structures

Results are presented from Monte Carlo calculations of the electric charge of dust grains in a plasma produced during the slowing down of the radioactive decay products of californium nuclei in neon. The dust grain charging is explained for the first time as being due to the drift of electrons and ions in an external electric field. It is shown that the charges of the grains depend on their coordinates and strongly fluctuate with time. The time-averaged grain charges agree with the experimental data obtained on ordered liquidlike dust structures in a nuclear-track plasma. The time-averaged dust grain charges are used to carry out computer modeling of the formation of dynamic vortex structures observed in experiments. Evidence is obtained of the fact that the electrostatic forces experienced by the dust grains are potential in character.     

Dust−ion acoustic freak wave propagation in a nonthermal mesospheric dusty plasma

Nonlinear properties of dust?ion acoustic freak waves have been studied in homogeneous unmagnetized dusty plasmas consisting of ions, nonthermal fast electrons, and positive and negative dust grains. By using derivative expansion method under the assumption of strongly dispersive medium, the basic equations are reduced to nonlinear Schrödinger equation (NLSE). One of NLSE solutions in the unstable region is the rational one which is responsible for creation of the freak waves. The dependence of the freak wave profile on the dust grain charge, carrier wavenumber, and energetic nonthermal electron population is discussed.     

Operator of pair electron-ion collisions in alternating electromagnetic fields

Collisions of electrons with ions in the presence of an alternating electromagnetic field are considered. Based on the first principles (the Liouville equations for N particles), a general expression for the collisional operator in the approximation of pair collisions at an arbitrary scattering potential, including that depending periodically on time, is derived. The problem of collisions in plasma in the presence of an electromagnetic field can be reduced to this case by introducing drift coordinates. It is shown that the method of test particles can be applied to the problem of particle collisions in an alternating electromagnetic field.