Electron acoustic shock waves in nonisothermal dissipative plasmas

The propagation characteristics of weakly nonlinear electron acoustic waves in the presence of nonisothermal (trapped) hot electrons are investigated in collisional plasmas. The dynamics of the nonlinear waves are found to be governed by Schamel–Burgers and Schamel–Korteweg–de Vries–Burgers-type equations depending on the strength of the nonisothermal parameter. Burgers’ terms appear due to the anomalous dissipation introduced by the collisions between cold electrons and immobile ions in the presence of collective phenomena (plasma current). The derived nonlinear equations are solved analytically with the help of the Tanh method. The time-dependent computational results well agree with the analytical results and predict the possibility of the oscillatory and monotonic shock-like structures depending on the strength of the collisional drag and nonisothermality of hot electrons. The trapped electrons significantly modify the amplitude and width of the nonlinear pulse. The results may explain the shock formation and the particle acceleration mechanism in auroral plasma region. Graphical Abstract