Kinetic study of quantum two-stream instability by Wigner approach

Classical plasma are typically of low density and/or high temperature. Two of its basic properties are Landau damping and two-stream instabilities. When increasing the plasma density, quantum effects appear and beam-plasma interactions show behavior different from the classical cases. We revisit Landau damping and two-stream instabilities under conditions when quantum hydrodynamic and quantum kinetic theory can be applied, the latter accounting for wave-particle interactions. We find that the instability growth rate behaves as pure two-stream instability without Landau damping when the countering stream velocity exceeds a certain threshold, which differs from the classical case.

Automated summary

Classical plasmas are characterized by low density and/or high temperature, exhibiting Landau damping and two-stream instabilities. When plasma density increases, quantum effects come into play, causing beam-plasma interactions to behave differently from classical cases. Under certain conditions where quantum hydrodynamic and kinetic theories apply, the instability growth rate may resemble pure two-stream instability without Landau damping when the velocity threshold is exceeded, in contrast to classical behavior.