SIMULATIONS OF THE INTERACTION BETWEEN A LIGHT-WAVE AND AN IONIZATIONFRONT IN A DC MAGNETIC-FIELD

We use a 1-D particle-in-cell simulation code to investigate the inter action of a light wave with a step relativistic ionization front in th e presence of an applied D.C. magnetic field either perpendicular or p arallel to the incident wave. It is seen that four transmitted waves a re generated in each case. The frequency upshifts and transmission coe fficients of those transmitted waves are measured from the simulation and compared to theoretical predictions. Furthermore, the phenomenon o f a density ripple associated with the free streaming mode in the perp endicular case is also observed in the simulation, and the modulation rates (Delta n/n(o)) are close to theoretical values.