Oscillating two stream instability of electromagnetic pump in the ion cyclotron range of frequency in a plasma

Abstract

An analytical formalism of oscillating two stream instability of a large amplitude electromagnetic wave in the ion cyclotron range of frequency in a plasma is developed. The instability produces electrostatic ion cyclotron sidebands and a driven low frequency mode. The nonlinear coupling arises primarily due to the motion of ions and is strong when the pump frequency is close to ion cyclotron frequency and the oscillatory ion velocity is a significant fraction of acoustic speed. For propagation perpendicular to the ambient magnetic field, the X-mode pump wave produces flute type perturbation with maximum growth rate at some specific wavelengths, which are three to four times larger than the ion Larmor radius. For propagation at oblique angles to ambient magnetic field, the ion cyclotron O-mode, the growth rate increases with the wave number of the low frequency mode.