Plasma Physics An Introductory Course

For the last thirty years, international summer schools in plasma physics have been held at Culham Laboratory, site of the Joint European Torus fusion project. This book has been developed from lectures given at these schools, and provides a wide-ranging introduction to the subject. The first few chapters deal with the fundamentals of plasma physics. In subsequent chapters, the applications and properties of man-made and naturally occurring plasmas are discussed. In addition, there are chapters devoted to general phenomena such as turbulence and chaos. The computational techniques employed in modelling plasma behaviour are also described. Since no prior knowledge of plasma physics is assumed, this book will act as an ideal introduction to the subject for final year undergraduates and beginning graduate students in physics, astronomy, mathematics and engineering.

Advanced undergraduate/beginning graduate text on space and laboratory plasma physics.

Introducing the principles and applications of plasma physics, this new edition is ideal as an advanced undergraduate or graduate-level text.

TO THE SECOND EDITION In the nine years since this book was first written, rapid progress has been made scientifically in nuclear fusion, space physics, and nonlinear plasma theory. At the same time, the energy shortage on the one hand and the exploration of Jupiter and Saturn on the other have increased the national awareness of the important applications of plasma physics to energy production and to the understanding of our space environment. In magnetic confinement fusion, this period has seen the attainment 13 of a Lawson number nTE of 2 x 10 cm -3 sec in the Alcator tokamaks at MIT; neutral-beam heating of the PL T tokamak at Princeton to KTi = 6. 5 keV; increase of average ß to 3%-5% in tokamaks at Oak Ridge and General Atomic; and the stabilization of mirror-confined plasmas at Livermore, together with injection of ion current to near field-reversal conditions in the 2XIIß device. Invention of the tandem mirror has given magnetic confinement a new and exciting dimension. New ideas have emerged, such as the compact torus, surface-field devices, and the EßT mirror-torus hybrid, and some old ideas, such as the stellarator and the reversed-field pinch, have been revived. Radiofrequency heat ing has become a new star with its promise of dc current drive. Perhaps most importantly, great progress has been made in the understanding of the MHD behavior of toroidal plasmas: tearing modes, magnetic Vll Vlll islands, and disruptions.

This book is an outgrowth of courses in plasma physics which I have taught at Kiel University for many years. During this time I have tried to convince my students that plasmas as different as gas dicharges, fusion plasmas and space plasmas can be described in a uni ed way by simple models. The challenge in teaching plasma physics is its apparent complexity. The wealth of plasma phenomena found in so diverse elds makes it quite different from atomic physics, where atomic structure, spectral lines and chemical binding can all be derived from a single equation—the Schrödinger equation. I positively accept the variety of plasmas and refrain from subdividing plasma physics into the traditional, but arti cially separated elds, of hot, cold and space plasmas. This is why I like to confront my students, and the readers of this book, with examples from so many elds. By this approach, I believe, they will be able to become discoverers who can see the commonality between a falling apple and planetary motion. As an experimentalist, I am convinced that plasma physics can be best understood from a bottom-up approach with many illustrating examples that give the students con dence in their understanding of plasma processes. The theoretical framework of plasma physics can then be introduced in several steps of re nement. In the end, the student (or reader) will see that there is something like the Schrödinger equation, namely the Vlasov-Maxwell model of plasmas, from which nearly all phenomena in collisionless plasmas can be derived.

Introduction to Plasma Physics is the standard text for an introductory lecture course on plasma physics. The text’s six sections lead readers systematically and comprehensively through the fundamentals of modern plasma physics. Sections on single-particle motion, plasmas as fluids, and collisional processes in plasmas lay the groundwork for a thorough understanding of the subject. The authors take care to place the material in its historical context for a rich understanding of the ideas presented. They also emphasize the importance of medical imaging in radiotherapy, providing a logical link to more advanced works in the area. The text includes problems, tables, and illustrations as well as a thorough index and a complete list of references.

The book describes a statistical approach to the basics of plasma physics.

For graduate students unfamiliar with particle physics, An Introductory Course of Particle Physics teaches the basic techniques and fundamental theories related to the subject. It gives students the competence to work out various properties of fundamental particles, such as scattering cross-section and lifetime. The book also gives a lucid summary of the main ideas involved. In giving students a taste of fundamental interactions among elementary particles, the author does not assume any prior knowledge of quantum field theory. He presents a brief introduction that supplies students with the necessary tools without seriously getting into the nitty-gritty of quantum field theory, and then explores advanced topics in detail. The book then discusses group theory, and in this case the author assumes that students are familiar with the basic definitions and properties of a group, and even SU(2) and its representations. With this foundation established, he goes on to discuss representations of continuous groups bigger than SU(2) in detail. The material is presented at a level that M.Sc. and Ph.D. students can understand, with exercises throughout the text at points at which performing the exercises would be most beneficial. Anyone teaching a one-semester course will probably have to choose from the topics covered, because this text also contains advanced material that might not be covered within a semester due to lack of time. Thus it provides the teaching tool with the flexibility to customize the course to suit your needs.