Diffusion Due to a Single Wave in a Magnetized Plasma

Abstract

The nature of charged-particle motion in the presence of a spectrum of waves usually depends on the width of the spectrum. In a narrow spectrum (modeled as a single wave), particles may be trapped in the potential wells of the wave and thereby have a limited acceleration. In a broad spectrum, resonant particles diffuse in velocity space, and thereby undergo a more extensive (stochastic) acceleration. In contrast to these well-known results we find¹ that a single wave in a magnetized plasma may cause particle diffusion.