FDTD Simulation of Electromagnetic Wave Transformation in a Dynamic Magnetized Plasma

Finite-Difference Time-Domain (FDTD) algorithms are applied to study the transformation of a pre-existing electromagnetic plane wave by prescribed time variation of a cold magnetoplasma with a magnetic field along the propagation direction. A one-dimensional FDTD code is used to verify the results obtained earlier using analytical approximations based on (a) WKB method for slow switching of the plasma medium and (b) Green's function technique for rapid switching of the plasma medium. A novel successive reduction method has been developed and applied to obtain the amplitudes and the frequencies of the new modes generated by the switching of the medium.