Linear and nonlinear properties of dust-acoustic waves in collisional, magnetized dusty plasmas

Effects of dust-neutral collision and densities of positive ions and electrons have been investigated for the propagation of dust-acoustic waves (DAWs) in magnetized dusty plasmas. It is found that, due to collisions, the DAWs damp waves and the damping rate of the waves depends mainly on the collision frequency (i.e., if there are no collisions the waves do not damp waves). The collisions are found to significantly change the basic properties (viz., the amplitude and the width) of the DAWs. The densities of positive ions and electrons have important roles in the behavior of the DAWs. The present analysis shows that only rarefactive solitary waves exist in the system. This investigation can be relevant to the DAWs in various space plasma environments, such as Jupiter's ring, the F ring of Saturn, and interstellar dusty clouds. (C) 2003 American Institute of Physics.