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Introduction
The context of the term ‘geophysics’ has changed considerably during the second half
of the past century. Well into the fifties the key interest of non-exploratory non-applied
geophysics focussed on the interior of our planet, i.e., solely on the geophysics of the
solid Earth, covering seismology, rock physics, magnetic and electric properties of
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crust and mantle, the structure of the outer and inner cores of Earth etc. Clearly, interest
in these fields has not diminished; at the contrary some of them have become mature
and have even attracted public interest. This is due to the development of methods of
data analysis and interpretation in seismology, new methods in high pressure physics
and a better understanding of the processes of wave propagation in matter under high
pressure and in fluids with the latter providing the key to the understanding of the
origin of the geomagnetic field. It is also due to the growing public interest in the
resources, in the environment, and in the history and the future of our planet.
On the other hand, with the advent of the spaceflight era, the interests of geophysi-
cists broadened and extended into the external neighborhood of our planet. It was
realized that the extraterrestrial matter is in an ionized state, very different from the
state of known matter near the ground of the Earth. Gradually, it was also realised that
this environment of Earth plays its own and not completely unimportant role. It is a
strongly dynamical environment on time scales much shorter than those of the dynam-
ical processes in the Earth’s interior. And it even affects, to sometimes non-negligible
extent, the processes close to the Earth’s surface which are the direct life-space of
mankind. This happened in the history of Earth when the geomagnetic field arose in
the interior of the planet and provided a screen preventing Earth’s surface from being
hit by medium energy Cosmic Rays and thus enabled the evolution of sophisticated
biological molecules and higher forms of life on Earth. It happened at later times
when the geomagnetic field changed polarity or switched from dipolar to quadrupolar
geometry and back again in the unstable phases of the geo-magnetic dynamo. It also
happens from time to time today when violent events in the immediate vicinity of the
Earth, so-called magnetic storms, occur and affect the propagation of electromagnetic
waves and other technical installations, having led to the invention of the new research
field of Space Weather which was coined in order to awake a feeling of conscience for
a relation between the weather and climate in space and the weather and climate on
Earth.
Matter in the state of high ionisation behaves unexpectedly because of its high
sensitivity to electric and magnetic fields and because of its ability to carry electric
currents, which sometimes can be very strong, and to provide a medium in that elec-
tric field may occasionally exist, drive motion of the matter and cause violent electric

1
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2 1. I NTRODUCTION

discharges. Within this context, the concept of a plasma became introduced and space
plasma physics became a new and important branch of geophysics. Nowadays, meth-
ods of plasma physics are not only used in external geophysics, but have also been
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recognised of being essential to the understanding of the dynamics of the Earth’s fluid
outer core and the generation of the terrestrial magnetic field.

1.1 Definition of a Plasma

A plasma is a gas of charged particles, which consists of about equal numbers of free
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positive and negative charge carriers. Having roughly the same number of charges
with different signs in the same volume element guarantees that the plasma behaves
quasi-neutral in the stationary state. On average a plasma looks electrically neutral
to the outside, since the randomly distributed particle electric charge fields mutually
cancel.
For a particle to be considered a free particle, its typical potential energy due to
its nearest neighbor must be much smaller than its random kinetic (thermal) energy.
Only then the particle’s motion is practically free from the influence by other charged
particles in its neighborhood as long as no direct collisions take place.
Since the particles in a plasma have to overcome the coupling with their neighbors,
they must have thermal energies above some electronvolts. Thus a typical plasma is
a hot and highly ionized gas. While only a few natural plasmas, such as flames or
lightning strokes, can be found near the Earth’s surface, plasmas are abundant in the
universe. More than 99% of all known ordinary baryonic matter in the ‘visible’ uni-
verse after light decoupled from matter at about 300 000 years after the Big Bang is
in the plasma state.

1.1.1 Debye Shielding

For the plasma to behave quasineutral in the stationary state, it is necessary to
have about equal numbers of positive and negative charges per volume element. Such
a volume element must be large enough to contain a sufficient number of particles, yet
small enough compared with the characteristic lengths for variations of macroscopic
parameters such as density n and temperature T . In each volume element the micro-
scopic space charge fields of the individual charge carriers must cancel each other to
provide the required macroscopic charge neutrality.
To let the plasma appear electrically neutral, the electric Coulomb potential field
φC of every individual point charge, q,

q
φC = (1.1)
4πε0 r
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1.1. Definition of a Plasma 3

Potential
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!C

!D
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"D Distance

Figure 1.1: Comparison of Debye and Coulomb potential demonstrating the shielding
above λD .

with ε0 being the free space permittivity, is shielded by other charges in the plasma
and assumes the Debye potential form
 
q r
φD = exp − (1.2)
4πε0 r λD

in which the exponential function cuts off the potential at distances r > λD . The char-
acteristic length scale, λD , is called Debye length and is the distance, over which a
balance is obtained between the thermal particle energy, which tends to perturb the
electrical neutrality, and the electrostatic potential energy resulting from any charge
separation, which tends to restore charge neutrality. Figure 1.1 shows this shielding
effect.
In Section 9.1 we will show that the Debye length is a function of the electron and
ion temperatures, Te and Ti , and the plasma density, ne ' ni (assuming singly charged
ions)

 1
ε0 kB Te 2
λD = (1.3)
ne e2

where we have assumed Te ' Ti and where kB is the Boltzmann constant and e the elec-
tron charge. We will give the exact definition of the temperature in Section 6.5. Until
then we will use the terms temperature and average energy, hW i = kB T , as synonyms.
In order for a plasma to be quasineutral, the physical dimension of the system, L,
must be large compared to the Debye (charge field shielding) length λD

λD  L (1.4)
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4 1. I NTRODUCTION

This requirement is often called the first plasma criterion. Below it will be completed
by a more quantitative and thus easier to handle criterion. Otherwise, when this condi-
tion is violated, there is not enough space available for the collective shielding effects
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to occur, and we have a simple neutral gas containing just a small number of ionised
particles (ions) insufficiently many to allow to speak of a plasma. The latter is typical
for most part of Earth’s atmosphere below roughly 80 km altitude.

1.1.2 The Plasma Parameter

Since the shielding effect is the result of the collective behavior inside a Debye
sphere of radius λD , it is necessary that this sphere contains a sufficiently large par-
ticles. The number of particles ND inside a Debye sphere is ND = 4π 3
3 ne λD . The term
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3
ne λD is often called the plasma parameter, Λ. With its help one has the second plasma
criterion

Λ ≡ ne λD3  1 (1.5)

By substituting λD from the expression given in Eq. (1.3) and raising each side of
Eq. (1.5) to the 2/3 power, it becomes apparent that the second criterion quantifies
what is meant by free particles. The mean potential energy, qφC = q2 /4πε0 λip  kB Te ,
of a particle due to its nearest neighbor, which is inversely proportional to the mean
−1/3
interparticle distance, λip = ne , and thus is proportional to n1/3 e , must be much
smaller than its mean energy, kB Te , for an ensemble of charged particles of both signs
to constitute a plasma.

1.1.3 The Plasma Frequency

The typical oscillation frequency in a fully ionized plasma is the electron plasma
frequency, ω pe . If the overall quasi-neutrality of the plasma is locally disturbed by
some external force or simply by fluctuations in the spatial particle distribution, the
light electrons, being more mobile than the much heavier ions, become accelerated in
an attempt to restore the violated charge neutrality. Due to their inertia they will move
back and forth around their original equilibrium position, which results in fast collec-
tive oscillations around the more massive ions and thus changes in electron density ne .
In Section 9.1 it will be shown that the plasma frequency depends on the square root
of the plasma density. With me the electron mass, the frequency ω pe can be written as

 12
ne e2

ω pe = (1.6)
me ε 0

Some plasmas, like the Earth’s ionosphere, are not fully ionized. Here we have a
substantial number of neutral particles and if the charged particles collide too often
with neutrals, the electrons will be forced into equilibrium with the neutrals. Then the
medium does not behave as a plasma anymore, but behaves similar to an electrically
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1.2. The Geophysical Plasmas 5

Electron Plasma Frequency in Hz

10 3 10 4 10 5
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Ring Current

m
7
107
Electron Temperature in Kelvin

10
00
10
Plasma
=

Sheet
D
!

10 6 10 6

Tail Lobe
5 Solar
10 10 5
Wind
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m
0
10

10 4 10 4
m
=

m
10
D
!

1
=
=

Plasmasphere
D
D

!
!

10¯ 2 10¯1 10 0 101 10 2 10 3

Electron Density in cm¯3

Figure 1.2: Ranges of the typical parameters density, temperature and Debye shielding length
for several geophysical plasmas. The plasma parameters differ by orders of magnitude. The
increase in the Debye length toward the upper left corner of the figure is of particular inter-
est. It visualises the increasing importance of the first plasma criterion with decreasing plasma
density and increasing temperature. Plasmas in that corner can be called plasma only if they
are sufficiently extended. This is, for instance, not necessarily the case anymore for the radia-
tion belt particles which therefore are usually treated as single charged particles moving in the
geomagnetic field.

conducting neutral gas. For the electrons to remain unaffected by collisions with neu-
trals, the average time between two electron-neutral collisions, τn , must be larger than
the reciprocal of the plasma frequency
ω pe τn  1 (1.7)
This is the third plasma criterion for an ionized medium to behave as a plasma. The
same criterion for the ions (replacing ω pe with ω pi ) puts a somewhat more stringent
condition on the plasma.

1.2 The Geophysical Plasmas

Plasmas are not only abundant in the universe, but also in our solar system. Even in the
immediate neighborhood of the Earth, all matter above about 100 km altitude, within
and above the ionosphere, must be treated using plasmaphysical methods.
There are quite a number of different geophysical plasmas, with a wide spread
in their characteristic parameters like density and temperature. Figure. 1.2 gives a
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6 1. I NTRODUCTION

Magnetosheath
Int netic
Ma
e rp k
g

oc
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lan Field

Sh
eta

w
ry

Bo
Magnetosphere

Solar Wind
T
M a e rre s
gn tri
e tic al
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Field

Magnetopause

Figure 1.3: Topography of the solar-terrestrial environment with the sun assumed to be located
in the far left, blowing the solar wind against the terrestrial (geomagnetic) field and confining
the field to the magnetosphere inside its outer boundary, the magnetopause. The solar wind
carries with it the interplanetary magnetic field. Because of the super-sonic nature of the solar
wind flow, a bow shock wave is generated in front of the magnetosphere. It compresses the
plasma and interplanetary magnetic field into the magnetosheath between the bow shock and
the magnetopause.

synopsis of the ranges of the plasma parameters density ne and temperature Te which
the plasmas cover in the environment of Earth. These ranges vary by many orders
of magnitude between the different plasmas. Accordingly their properties are very
different.

1.2.1 The Solar Wind

The sun emits a highly conducting plasma which streams radially out of the sun
at supersonic speeds of about 500 km/s into the interplanetary space. This outflow of
plasma is the result of the supersonic expansion of the solar corona which is caused
by the heating of the solar corona by some even today barely specified process which
creates such high temperatures that a large number of the fast particles, electrons and
also ions, in the solar corona can overcome the solar gravitational attraction and escape
into interplanetary space being blown out of the sun like a solar breath.
Because of the solar variability the velocity of this stream may vary between
300 km/s and 1500 km/s though both extremes occur only relatively rarely during
particular solar eruption events. This streaming and expanding plasma is called the
solar wind and consists mainly of electrons and protons, with an admixture of 5%
Helium ions. Expanding radially out the density of the solar wind decrease with the
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1.2. The Geophysical Plasmas 7

inverse square of the distance from the sun while its temperature decreases adiabati-
cally. At distance of 1 AU at the orbit of Earth the solar wind is already quite dilute
and thus electrically highly conducting. Typical values for the electron density and
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temperature in the solar wind near the Earth are ne ≈ 5 cm−3 and Te ≈ 105 K (1 eV =
11,600 K; see Appendix B.2). The solar wind ions have lower and therefore difficult
to measure temperature roughly one order of magnitude less than the electrons.
Because of the very high solar wind conductivity, which for all practical purposes
can be assumed to be infinitely high (see Chapter 4 for a discussion of plasma con-
ductivities), the solar coronal magnetic field is completely ‘frozen’ into the streaming
solar wind plasma (very similar to a superconductor, see Section 5.1) and drawn out-
ward by the expanding solar wind flow, gradually becoming the interplanetary mag-
netic field (which usually is abbreviated as IMF). The interplanetary magnetic field
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at 1 AU near Earth’s orbit is of the order of ∼5 nT but may vary between 3 nT and
occasionally even 12 nT. With radial distance from the sun it decays like the inverse of
the radius. Later we will show that with distance it readily assumes an about azimuthal
spiral field configuration.
When the solar wind hits on the Earth’s dipolar magnetic field, it cannot simply
penetrate it but rather is slowed down and, to a large extent, deflected around it as
shown schematically in Fig. 1.3. The solar wind hits the obstacle with supersonic
speed, and a bow shock wave is generated in front of the Earth in the direction of
the sun. At this bow shock the solar wind plasma is slowed down and a substantial
fraction of the solar wind particles’ kinetic energy is converted into thermal energy.
The extended region of thermalized subsonic plasma behind the bow shock between
it and the outer boundary of the geomagnetic field is called the magnetosheath. Its
plasma is compressed and thus denser and hotter than the proper solar wind plasma
and the magnetic field strength has higher values in the magnetosheath region. Both
magnetic field and plasma density undergo quite large fluctuations here in magnitude,
and the magnetic field and flow also in direction.

1.2.2 The Magnetosphere

The shocked solar wind plasma in the magnetosheath cannot easily penetrate the
terrestrial magnetic field but is mostly deflected around it. This is a consequence of
the fact that the interplanetary magnetic field lines cannot penetrate the terrestrial field
lines and that the solar wind particles cannot leave the interplanetary field lines due to
the aforementioned frozen-in characteristic of a highly conducting plasma.
The boundary separating the two different regions is called magnetopause and the
cavity generated by the terrestrial field has been named magnetosphere (see Figs. 1.3
and 1.4). The kinetic pressure of the solar wind plasma distorts the outer part of the
terrestrial dipolar field. At the frontside it compresses the field, while the nightside
magnetic field is stretched out into a long magnetotail which reaches far beyond lunar
orbit.
The plasma in the magnetosphere consists mainly of electrons and protons. The
sources of these particles are the solar wind and the terrestrial ionosphere. In addition
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8 1. I NTRODUCTION

se
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au Lobe
top
gne
a
M

Plasmasphere

Plasma Sheet
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Radiation Belt

Figure 1.4: The plasma structure of the Earth’s magnetosphere showing the four main magne-
tospheric plasma popultions: a dilute plasma in the lobes, a hot plasma in the plasma sheet, a
dense cold plasma in the plasmasphere, and the very dilute and hot radiation belt plasma.

there are small fractions of He+ and O+ ions of ionospheric origin and some He++
ions originating from the solar wind. However, the plasma inside the magnetosphere
is not evenly distributed, but is grouped into different regions with quite different
densities and temperatures. Figure 1.4 depicts the topography of some of these regions.
The radiation belt lies on dipolar field lines between about 2 and 6 RE (1 Earth
radius = 6371 km). It consists of energetic electrons and ions which move along the
field lines and oscillate back and forth between the two hemispheres (see Section 3.2).
Typical electron densities and temperatures in plasma background in the radiation belt
region are ne ≈ 1 cm−3 and Te ≈ 5 × 107 K. The high energy radiation belt particles
which give this region the name have much lower density while being of much higher
kinetic energy, of the order of > 30 keV reaching up to several MeV. The magnetic
field strength ranges between about 100 and 1000 nT.
Most of the magnetotail plasma is concentrated around the tail midplane in an
about 10 RE thick plasma sheet that extends far out into the nightside. Near the Earth,
it reaches down to the high-latitude auroral ionosphere along the field lines. Average
electron densities and temperatures in the plasma sheet are ne ≈ 0.5 cm−3 and Te ≈
5 × 106 K, with B ≈ 10 nT.
The outer part of the magnetotail is called the magnetotail lobe. It contains a highly
rarified plasma with typical values for the electron density and temperature and the
magnetic field strength of ne ≈ 10−2 cm−3 , Te ≈ 5 × 105 K, and B ≈ 30 nT, respec-
tively.
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1.2. The Geophysical Plasmas 9

Noon

60°
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70°

80°
Dusk Dawn
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Midnight

Figure 1.5: Average auroral oval (shaded region) and polar cap. The auroral oval is defined
as the region of occurrence of visible auroae. This is centred around the pole regions both on
the North over the Arctic and the South over Antarctica. This region is not a perfect oval. On
the nightside it extends down to latitudes of ∼ 40◦ while on the dayside it is quite close to the
pole and much narrower than during night which accounts for the more frequent occurrence of
aurorae during night time. The closed region that is left free around the pole is the polar cap
region.

1.2.3 The Ionosphere

The solar ultraviolet light impinging on the Earth’s atmosphere ionizes a fraction
of the neutral atmosphere. This ionisation effect is highly altitude dependent and thus
not solely determined by the solar irradiation of the atmosphere but to a large extent
by the constitution of the atmosphere, its chemical composition and its density. The
latter is a function of altitude which is determined by the gravitational attraction of
Earth and by the temperature of the atmosphere. Thus, the ionisation is also a func-
tion of the geographical latitude and local time. To some extent the ionisation is also
affected by temporal variations in the atmosphere which may reach altitudes of the
ionosphere and to solar variability. At altitudes above 80 km collisions between neutral
and freshly ionised ions are too infrequent to result in rapid recombination and a per-
manent ionized population called the ionosphere is formed. Typical electron densities
and temperatures in the mid-latitude ionosphere are ne ≈ 105 cm−3 and Te ≈ 103 K.
The magnetic field strength is of the order of 104 nT.
The ionosphere extends to rather high altitudes and, at low- and mid-latitudes,
gradually merges into the plasmasphere. As depicted in Fig. 1.4, the plasmasphere is
a torus-shaped volume inside the radiation belt. It contains a cool but dense plasma
of ionospheric origin (ne ≈ 5 × 102 cm−3 , Te ≈ 5 × 103 K), which corotates with the
Earth. In the equatorial plane, the plasmasphere extends out to about 4 RE , where the
density drops down sharply to about 1 cm−3 . This boundary is called the plasmapause.
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10 1. I NTRODUCTION

At high latitudes plasma sheet electrons can precipitate along magnetic field lines
down to ionospheric altitudes, where they collide with and ionize neutral atmosphere
particles. As a by-product, photons emitted by this process create the polar light, the
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aurora. These auroras are typically observed inside the auroral oval (see Fig. 1.5),
which contains the footprints of those field lines which thread the plasma sheet. Inside
of the auroral oval lies the polar cap, which is threaded by field lines connected to the
tail lobe.

1.3 Magnetospheric Currents

The plasmas discussed in the last section are usually not stationary but move under
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the influence of external forces. Sometimes ions and electrons move together, like in
the solar wind. But at other occasions and in other plasma regions, ions and electrons
move into different directions, creating electric currents. Such currents play a very
important role in the dynamics of the Earth’s plasma environment. They transport
charge, mass, momentum and energy. Moreover, the currents create magnetic fields,
which may severely alter or distort any pre-existing fields. Actually, the distortion of
the terrestrial dipole field into the typical shape of the magnetosphere is also accom-
panied by electrical currents. As schematically shown in Fig. 1.6, the compression of
the terrestrial magnetic field on the dayside is associated with current flow along the
magnetopause surface, the magnetopause current. The tail-like field of the nightside
magnetosphere is accompanied by the tail current flowing on the tail surface and the
neutral sheet current in the central plasma sheet, flowing across the magnetosphere
from dawn to dusk; both currents are connected and form a Θ-like current system, if
seen from along the Earth-Sun line.
Another large-scale current system, which influences the configuration of the inner
magnetosphere, is the ring current. The ring current flows around the Earth in a west-
ward direction at radial distances of several Earth radii and is carried by the ionic
component and also the low-energy electronic component of the radiation belt parti-
cles mentioned above. In addition to their bounce motion, these particles drift slowly
around the Earth. Since the protons drift westward while the electrons move in the
eastward direction, this constitutes a net charge transport.
A number of current systems exist in the conducting layers of the Earth’s iono-
sphere, at altitudes of 100–150 km. Most notable are the auroral electrojets inside the
auroral oval, the Sq currents in the dayside mid-latitude ionosphere, and the equatorial
electrojet above the magnetic equator. The Sq current is a permanently present about
stationary current system caused by the solar illumination of the ionosphere which
restricts it to the dayside region. The two jets are concentrations of current flows at
about constant geomagnetic latitude.
In addition to these currents which all flow perpendicular to the geomagnetic
and magnetospheric field, currents also flow along the electrically highly conducting
magnetic field lines. One may distinguish between large-scale and small-scale field-
aligned currents. As shown in Fig. 1.6, the large-scale field-aligned currents connect
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1.4. Theoretical Approaches 11

Tail current
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Ring current
Neutral sheet current
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Field-aligned
Magnetopause currents
current

Figure 1.6: Synopsis of the large-scale currents (shaded arrows) flowing in the magnetosphere.
The dominant magnetospheric current system consists of currents flowing perpendicular to the
magnetic field. These are the magnetopause currents and tail currents along the boundary of
the magnetosphere, the neutral sheet current across the magnetospheric tail which connects
to the tail current, and the ring current flowing around Earth in the equatorial plane of the
magnetosphere. Shown are also the field-aligned currents which connect the magnetospheric
(neutral sheet and ring) current system to the ionosphere. The ionospheric currents flowing
perpendicular to the magnetic field which close the current system are not shown.

the large-scale magnetospheric current systems in the magnetosphere to those currents

flowing in the polar ionosphere. Small-scale field-aligned currents, on the other hand,
are generated by temporal processes in the magnetospheric system and do not neces-
sarily connect the entire large-scale magnetospheric current system to the ionosphere.
They mostly connect only selected parts of the magnetosphere which are temporar-
ily affected. This happens, for instance, during so-called magnetospheric disturbances
during substorms. The field-aligned currents are almost exclusively carried by elec-
trons flowing along the magnetic field and are essential for the exchange of energy
and momentum between the magnetospheric and ionospheric regions which are con-
nected through the geomagnetic field.

1.4 Theoretical Approaches

The dynamics of a plasma is governed by the interaction of the charge carriers with
the electric and magnetic fields. If all the fields were of external origin, the physics
would be relatively simple. However, as the particles move around, they may create
local space charge concentrations and thus electric fields. Moreover, their motion can
also generate electric currents and thus magnetic fields. These internal fields and their
feedback onto the motion of the plasma particles make plasma physics difficult.
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12 1. I NTRODUCTION

In general the dynamics of a plasma can be described by solving the equations of

motion for each individual particle. This is the approach applied in so-called numerical
particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations where the equations of motion of large numbers of
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particles are solved in a brute-force approach. Since the electric and magnetic fields
appearing in each equation include the internal fields generated by every other moving
particle, all equations are coupled and have to be solved simultaneously. Such a full
solution is not only too difficult to obtain, but also of no immediate practical use, since
one is interested in knowing average quantities like density and temperature rather
than the individual velocity of each particle. Therefore, one usually makes certain
approximations suitable to the problem studied. It has turned out that four different
approaches are most useful.
The simplest approach is the single particle motion description. In principle this is
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not a plasma physics approach because none of the criteria is satisfied. It describes the
motion of a particle under the influence of external electric and magnetic fields which
are not affected by the presence of the particle(s). This approach neglects the collective
behavior of a plasma, but is useful when studying a very low density plasma, like
found in the Earth’s ring current and in the radiation belts. To zero order approximation
this approach provides also very rough information of the particle behaviour in plasma,
in particular about the particle parameters.
The magnetohydrodynamic approach is the other extreme. It neglects all single
particle aspects. The plasma is treated as a single electrically conducting fluid with
only macroscopic variables of interest, like average density, velocity, and tempera-
ture. The approach assumes that the plasma is able to maintain local equilibria and
is suitable to study very-low-frequency wave phenomena in highly conducting flu-
ids immersed into sufficiently strong magnetic fields. We will at a later place more
precisely quantify the limitations of this approach. We note, however, that magneto-
hydrodynamic is very well applicable to the processes in Earth’s deep interior, the
outer core, where the matter is in the state of a highly conducting metallic fluid but
not in the plasma state.
The multi-fluid approach, which is much better suited for treating real plasmas
than magnetohydrodynamics, is similar to the magnetohydrodynamic approach, but
accounts for different particle species (electrons, protons, and possibly heavier ions).
It assumes that each species behaves like a separate fluid. In this sense it is the mag-
netohydrodynamics of each particle fluid separately, coupling all fluids through the
common external magnetic field. It has the advantage that differences in the fluid
behaviour of the light electrons and the heavier ions can all be taken into account.
This can lead to charge separation fields, internal current flow and also the possibility
of wave propagation in the low and high frequency ranges and of electromagnetic and
electrostatic nature.
The kinetic theory is the most developed plasma theory. It adopts a statistical
approach. Instead of solving the equations of motion for each individual particle, it
considers the development of the distribution function for the system of particles under
consideration in phase and configuration space. Yet even in kinetic theory certain
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1.4. Theoretical Approaches 13

simplifying assumptions have to be made and there are different flavors of kinetic
theory, depending on the kind of simplification made.
In the present book we will describe all these approaches and apply them to suit-
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able geophysical plasma phenomena. We will start with the single particle approach.
Subsequently, we will derive the basic equations of the kinetic theory, but then first
turn to the fluid theories and their applications, before we finally go into the details of
the kinetic approach.

References
[1] F. F. Chen, Introduction to Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion (Plenum Press,
Basic Space Plasma Physics Downloaded from [Link]

New York, 1974).

[2] D. A. Gurnett and A. Bhattacharjee, Introduction to Plasma Physics (Cambridge
University Press, 2005).
[3] M. G. Kivelson and C. T. Russell, Introduction to Space Physics (Cambridge Uni-
versity Press, Cambridge, UK 1995).
[4] G. K. Parks, Physics of Space Plasmas: An Introduction (Westview Press,
Advanced Book Program, Boulder CO, 2004).

Problems
Problem 1.1 What is the physical meaning of the plasma parameter Λ?
Hint: Think of the relation between the inter-particle distance and the screening length.

Problem 1.2 Figure 1.1 shows the screening of the electric field of an ion. Inspection
of this figure suggests, however, that the screening is not complete. Calculate the stray
field outside the Debye sphere. What is its value in the solar wind at density ne =
5 cm−3 and temperature kB Te = 50 eV?

Problem 1.3 Give a physically intuitive interpretation of the plasma frequency.

Problem 1.4 Can one think of Langmuir waves with their high-frequency electric
field oscillation as of electromagnetic waves? What are the difference to waves in free
space?

Problem 1.5 We have listed three regions of plasmas in space: the Solar Wind, the
Magnetosphere and the Ionosphere. Why distinguishing in this manner? What are the
main differences between these regions?

Problem 1.6 Could you think of other regions in space outside the direct environment
of Earth (the solar system and possibly even beyond) where plasmas of similar kind
would exist? What would be the differences to the Earth’s environment?
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14 1. I NTRODUCTION

Problem 1.7 Apply the first and second plasma criteria to Earth’s ionosphere, solar
wind and also to cosmic rays. Which of those regions deserve the term plasma?
Hint: Cosmic ray densities depend on energy but are of the order of 10−4 − 10−6 cm−3
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while having kinetic energies (‘temperatures’) of kB T ∼ 10 MeV to 103 GeV.

Problem 1.8 What is the reason for the solar wind density to decay like the inverse
square of the radial distance from the sun? Assuming an adiabatic index of γ = 35 what
would be the electron temperature of the solar wind at its start at coronal distance of
0.01 AU?

Problem 1.9 Why does the interplanetary magnetic field which is carried radially
away from the sun not also decay as the inverse square of the radial distance? Why
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does it turn into azimuthal direction at large radial distances?