A Short Introduction to General Gyrokinetic Theory

Interesting plasmas in the laboratory and space are magnetized. General gyrokinetic theory is about a symmetry, gyro-symmetry, in the Vlasov-Maxwell system for magnetized plasmas. The most general gyrokinetic theory can be geometrically formulated. First, the coordinate-free, geometric Vlasov-Maxwell equations are developed in the 7-D phase space, which is defined as a fiber bundle over the space-time. The Poincar{copyright}-Cartan-Einstein 1-form pullbacked onto the 7-D phase space determines particles' worldlines in the phase space, and realizes the momentum integrals in kinetic theory as fiber integrals. The infinite small generator of the gyro-symmetry is then asymptotically constructed as the base for the gyrophase coordinate of the gyrocenter coordinate system. This is accomplished by applying the Lie coordinate perturbation method to the Poincar{copyright}-Cartan-Einstein 1-form, which also generates the most relaxed condition under which the gyro-symmetry still exists. General gyrokinetic Vlasov-Maxwell equations are then developed as the Vlasov-Maxwell equations in the gyrocenter coordinate system, rather than a set of new equations. Since the general gyrokinetic system-developed is geometrically the same as the Vlasov-Maxwell equations, all the coordinate independent properties of the Vlasov-Maxwell equations, such as energy conservation, momentum conservation, and Liouville volume conservation, are automatically carried over to the general gyrokinetic system. The pullback transformation associated with the coordinate transformation is shown to be an indispensable part of the general gyrokinetic Vlasov-Maxwell equations. Without this vital element, a number of prominent physics features, such as the presence of the compressional Alfven wave and a proper description of the gyrokinetic equilibrium, cannot be readily recovered. Three examples of applications of the general gyrokinetic theory developed in the areas of plasma equilibrium and plasma waves are given. Interesting topics, such as gyro-center gauge and gyro-gauge, are discussed as well