Electrical noise of the plasma of an rf discharge in a uniform magnetic field

A correlation method has been used to study the waves which appear spontaneously with a continuous noise spectrum over a broad frequency range in a magnetized, weakly ionized argon plasma. The ranges of the magnetic field and the pressure over which the waves exist have been determined. The wave dispersion law has been studied. The theory used to explain the plasma instability incorporates the simultaneous effects of the ion inertia and a deviation from quasineutrality in perturbations. The waves are shown to be excited by a drift-dissipative mechanism