Published online by Cambridge University Press: 13 March 2009
Kinetic equations are obtained which describe the variation in one spatial direction of a plasma whose average properties are independent of time and do not vary in the perpendicular direction.
These equations consist of a coupled set giving the variation of the electric field fluctuation spectrum and the particle distribution functions. They take into account particle discreteness effects and describe the plasma both when it is stable and weakly unstable. It is suggested that they may be used to describe an infinite plane shock wave in a plasma.