Comparison between Longitudinal Wave in Electron Plasma and One-Velocity Neutron Transport

Abstract

A comparison is made between the longitudinal wave in an electron plasma and the one-velocity neutron transport, using the Neumann series solution of the linearized Boltzmann equation. As a result, the transport of the disturbance in an electron plasma and the neutron transport are both expressed by the superposition of essential modes, which describe the streaming processes of electrons and neutrons.
The spatio-time distribution of the essential mode in a neutron field is always positive, while, that in an electron plasma is negative. This difference explains why the asymptotic mode of neutrons exhibits the diffusion-like behavior and that of electrons plasma oscillation.