Spin-Independent Oscillations of a Degenerate Electron Liquid

Abstract

A formal procedure, valid for arbitrary wavelengths, for calculating the conductivity tensor of an electron liquid is presented. The spin-independent magnetoplasma modes are determined by requiring that the constitutive equation (solution of the kinetic equation) be consistent with Maxwell's equations. If the small coupling between plasma waves and spin waves is neglected, Maxwell's equations can be used to eliminate the ac electric and magnetic fields from the kinetic equation. The magnetoplasma modes can then be determined rather simply by solving the kinetic equation. The secular equations determining the dispersion relations for propagation both perpendicular and parallel to the dc magnetic field are given. Analytic results are given for the long wavelength limit, and numerical results are presented for the case in which the interaction function is approximated by the first-three terms in an expansion in Legendre polynomials.