Study of the higher-order shock excitations in a degenerate quantum plasma

Abstract

We propose a comprehensive theory for one dimensional ion-acoustic shock waves (IASWs) in an unmagnetized degenerate quantum plasma that is assumed to contain inertial ions and relativistic degenerate electrons. The modified Burgers (mB) and the Gardner equations have been derived by employing the reductive perturbation method and have been analyzed in order to identify the basic features (amplitude, width, speed, etc.) of the IASWs. The basic features of these shocks obtained from this analysis are observed to be significantly different from those obtained from the standard Burgers equation. The implications of our results in space and interstellar compact objects (viz. white dwarfs, non-rotating neutron stars, active galactic nuclei, cometary tails, etc.) are briefly mentioned. Full Text Link: https://doi.org/10.3938/jkps.65.1883