Nonlinear Dynamics of Incoherent Superstrong Radiation in a Plasma

Abstract

We present a new concept of nonlinear dynamics of incoherent superstrong radiation in plasmas. Recently we have disclosed a novel mechanism of the establishment of equilibrium between a photon and a dense photon bunch through the exchange of longitudinal photons (Tsintsadze 2004 Phys. Plasmas 11, 855). Based on this mechanism of the "Compton" scattering type, we have generalized Wigner-Moyal equation for the dense photon gas, including the collision integral for the occupation number of photons. In the geometric optics approximation the Wigner-Moyal type of equation reduces to the one particle Vlasov-Boltzmann equation for the photon gas. From this equation, which gives a microscopic description of the photon gas, we derive a set of fluid equations, and consider numerically the formation of 3D shock waves.