Abstract
Several mechanisms by which an external electromagnetic field influences the temperature of a plasma are studied analytically and specialized to the system of an ultracold plasma (UCP) driven by a uniform radio-frequency (rf) field. Heating through collisional absorption is reviewed and applied to UCPs. Furthermore, it is shown that the rf field modifies the three-body recombination process by ionizing electrons from intermediate high-lying Rydberg states and upshifting the continuum threshold, resulting in a suppression of three-body recombination. Heating through collisionless absorption associated with the finite plasma size is calculated in detail, revealing a temperature threshold below which collisionless absorption is ineffective.
Original language | English |
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Article number | 063413 |
Pages (from-to) | 1-12 |
Number of pages | 12 |
Journal | Physical Review A: Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics |
Volume | 85 |
Issue number | 6 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2012 |