Ponderomotive electron physics captured in single-fluid extended MHD model

Abstract

The well-known ponderomotive force, arising from the interaction of matter and light, has critical implications across a broad range of fields from laser fusion and astrophysics to laser diagnostics and even pulsed-power experiments. This pseudo-potential pushes electrons, which through coulomb forces causes ion density modulations that can steepen with profound implications. When used intentionally, density modulations can be used for plasma gratings, which are essential for optical components operating in extreme conditions for next generation lasers. They can also be important for plasma confinement and particle trapping, which can even impact magnetic confinement in fusion devices. The ponderomotive potential also leads to laser self-focusing, complicating laser diagnostics. In laser fusion, the force exacerbates challenges posed by stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS) and crossed beam energy transfer (CBET), both of which destabilize the fusion process. It even plays an astrophysical role in the filamentation of fast radio bursts in the relativistic winds of magnetars. Since the ponderomotive force primarily effects electron dynamics, multi-fluid/particle codes or additional ansatz are required to include its effects. This paper demonstrates that by including electron effects on an ion timescale with a 1-fluid, 2-energy extended magnetohydrodynamics (XMHD) model, ponderomotive effects are also naturally present. We introduce the theory for these dynamics and demonstrate their presence with 1-D pencil-like simulations.