Work

Propagation of strong electromagnetic waves in tenuous plasmas

Year: 2024

Type: article

Abstract: We study the propagation of electromagnetic waves in tenuous plasmas, where the wave frequency ω 0 is much larger than the plasma frequency ω P . We show that in pair plasmas, nonlinear effects are weak for a 0 ≪ ω 0 / ω P , where a 0 is the wave strength parameter. In electron-proton plasmas, a more restrictive condition must be satisfied, namely, either a 0 ≪ 1 / ω P τ 0 , where τ 0 is the duration of the radiation pulse, or a 0 ≪ 1 . We derive the equations that govern the evolution of the pulse in the weakly nonlinear regime. Our results have important implications for the modeling of fast radio bursts. We argue that (i) millisecond duration bursts with a smooth profile must be produced in a proton-free environment, where nonlinear effects are weaker, and (ii) propagation through an electron-proton plasma near the source can imprint a submicrosecond variability on the burst profile. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Source: Physical Review Research

DOI: 10.1103/physrevresearch.6.043213

Authors: Emanuele Sobacchi, Masanori Iwamoto, Lorenzo Sironi, Tsvi Piran