The penetration of a plasma with finite conductivity and Hall constant by the high-frequency electromagnetic field produced by a travelling wave is considered from the theoretical standpoint, with a view to explaining qualitatively the results of experiments on the containment of a hot plasma with the help of a high-frequency field. A non-linear electrodynamic problem is formulated in the quasi-stationary approximation for a plasma at rest with given constant conductivity and Hall constants – a generalization of the classical skin-effect problem. The problem is solved numerically for the case of cylindrical symmetry and for a wide range of plasma parameters and HF fields. A travelling wave produced by an azimuthal current and propagating over the cylindrical surface in the direction of the system axis is taken as the external source of the HF field. A plasma conductor of fixed radius is located within this surface. On the assumption of sufficiently high plasma conductivity, an effective method of successive approximations is derived; it consists in obtaining alternate numerical solutions of electrodynamic problems that are external and internal to the plasma. The results are used for deriving qualitative and quantitative conclusions regarding the physical characteristics of the interaction between the plasma and the HF field, and for subsequent comparison of theory with experiment.
On the theory of processes in plasma that produce migration across a magnetic field