General dispersion relation for surface waves on a plasma—vacuum interface: an image approach

Abstract

The image approach, used extensively to treat bounded unmagnetized plasmas, is extended to the case of an arbitrary homogeneous and non-magnetic medium. A general dispersion relation for electromagnetic surface waves on a plane plasma-vacuum interface is thus obtained, subject only to the suitability of the chosen boundary conditions. The boundary conditions used here are those of Barr and Boyd. It is emphasized that this dispersion relation is applicable to magnetized plasmas. The general dispersion relation is applied to the special case of an isotropie medium, and the dispersion relation of Barr and Boyd for an unmagnetized plasma is reproduced. A major assumption in the image approach is that the semi-infinite bounded medium can be described by the infinite-medium response. The validity of this assumption and of the boundary conditions is discussed. Two conditions are deduced that must be satisfied for the image theory to be self-consistent. It is argued that these can be satisfied in all situations for which the assumed boundary conditions are appropriate.