Magnetosonic Waves in a Two-Dimensional Electron Fermi Liquid

Abstract

The properties of highly viscous fluids at high frequencies become similar to those of amorphous solids. In particular, the propagation of not only longitudinal acoustic waves (plasmons in the case of an electron fluid), but also transverse acoustic waves associated with shear deformations becomes possible. In this work, the formation of transverse acoustic waves at high frequencies in a two-dimensional electron fluid in a magnetic field is studied. Consideration is performed within Landau’s Fermi-liquid model. It is shown that the dynamics of Fermi-liquid excitations is described by hydrodynamic equations at a rather strong quasiparticle interaction. The Navier–Stokes equation and expressions for high-frequency shear viscosity coefficients are derived. Based on the equations obtained, dispersion laws are calculated for transverse and longitudinal magnetosonic waves. It is shown that the cyclotron frequency entering the viscosity coefficients and the dispersion relation of transverse magnetosonic waves is renormalized and typically becomes lower than the ordinary cyclotron frequency determining cyclotron resonance. The latter fact was apparently observed in the photoresistance of high-mobility GaAs quantum wells in which two-dimensional electrons form a viscous fluid.