Effective time and resonance width in cyclotron resonance heating

The concepts of effective time and interaction time are examined in a unified context that includes electron cyclotron resonance heating as well as fast and slow wave ion cyclotron resonance heating. Here effective time tsub(e) is defined by Δupsilonsub(perpendicular to) = (eEsub(+)/m)tsub(e), while interaction time tsub(i) is the period over which the phase between the particle and the wave is slowly changing. Elliptically polarized travelling waves are assumed obliquely incident upon an arbitrary magnetic mirror field. Arbitrary harmonics and Doppler shift are included in the analysis. (author)