Irreversible Processes in Ionized Gases

Abstract

The general theory of irreversible processes, developed by Prigogine and Balescu, is applied to the case of long range interactions in ionized gases. A similar diagram technique permits the systematic selection of all the contributions to the evolution of the distribution function, to an order of approximation equivalent to Debye's equilibrium theory. The infinite series which appear in this way can be summed exactly. The resulting evolution equations have a clear physical significance: they describe interactions of ``quasi particles,'' which are electrons or ions ``dressed'' by their polarization clouds. These clouds are not a permanent feature, as in equilibrium theory, but have a nonequilibrium, changing shape, distorted by the motions of the particles. From the mathematical point of view, these equations exhibit a new type of nonlinearity, which is very directly related to the collective nature of the interactions.