An electrostatic parabolic density drift instability

Abstract

Assuming a uniform magnetic field and using the local approximation, the Vlassov theory for an electrostatic instability driven by a parabolic density gradient is considered. It is found that the instability grows only in the case of a sufficiently large, positive second derivative of the density. Linear growth rate parametric dependences are given, in addition to weakly nonlinear calculations on wave-particle transport due to this instability.