Two-fluid implementation in

Context. The chromosphere is a partially ionized layer of the solar atmosphere, which acts as the transition between the photosphere where the gas is almost neutral and the fully ionized corona. As the collisional coupling between neutral and charged particles decreases in the upper part of the chromosphere, the hydrodynamical timescales may become comparable to the collisional timescale, thus calling for the application of a two-fluid model. Aims. In this paper, we describe the implementation and validation of a two-fluid model that simultaneously evolves charges and neutrals, coupled by collisions. Methods. The two-fluid equations are implemented in the fully open-source MPI-AMRVA

Effects of ambipolar diffusion on waves in the solar chromosphere

Context. The chromosphere is a partially ionized layer of the solar atmosphere that mediates the transition between the photosphere where the gas motion is determined by the gas pressure and the corona dominated by the magnetic field. Aims. We study the effect of partial ionization for 2D wave propagation in a gravitationally stratified, magnetized atmosphere characterized by properties that are similar to those of the solar chromosphere. Methods. We adopted an oblique uniform magnetic field in the plane of propagation with a strength that is suitable for a quiet sun region. The theoretical model we used is a single fluid magnetohydrodynamic approximation, where ion-neutral interaction is modeled by the ambipolar diffusion term. Magnetic energy can be converted into internal energy through the dissipation of the electric current produced by the drift between ions and neutrals. We used numerical simulations in which we continuously drove fast waves at the bottom of the atmosphere. The collisional coupling between ions and neutrals decreases with the decrease in the density and the ambipolar effect thus becomes important. Results. Fast waves excited at the base of the atmosphere reach the equipartition layer and are reflected or transmitted as slow waves. While the waves propagate through the atmosphere and the density drops, the waves steepen into shocks. Conclusions. The main effect of ambipolar diffusion is damping of the waves. We find that for the parameters chosen in this work, the ambipolar diffusion affects the fast wave before it is reflected, with damping being more pronounced for waves which are launched in a direction perpendicular to the magnetic field. Slow waves are less affected by ambipolar effects. The damping increases for shorter periods and greater magnetic field strengths. Small scales produced by the nonlinear effects and the superposition of different types of waves created at the equipartition height are efficiently damped by ambipolar diffusion

Two-fluid reconnection jets in a gravitationally stratified atmosphere

The density decreases exponentially with height in the solar gravitationally stratified atmosphere, therefore the collisional coupling between the ionized plasma and the neutrals also decreases. Here, we investigate the role of collisions between ions and neutrals on the reconnection process occurring at various heights in the atmosphere. We perform simulations of magnetic reconnection induced by a localized resistivity in a gravitationally stratified atmosphere, where we vary the height of the initial reconnection X-point. We compare a magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) model and two two-fluid configurations: one where the collisional coupling is calculated from local plasma parameters and another where the coupling is decreased, so that collisional effects are enhanced. Simulations in a stratified atmosphere show similar structures in MHD and two-fluid simulations with strong coupling. However, when collisional effects are increased to attain representative parameter regimes, we find a nonlinear runaway instability, which separates the plasma-neutral densities across the current sheet (CS). With increased collisional effects, the initial decoupling in velocity heats the neutrals and this sets up a nonlinear feedback where neutrals migrate outside the CS, replacing charged particles which accumulate towards the center of the CS. The reconnection rate has a maximum value around 0.1, similar for both reconnection heights, and is consistent with the use of a localized enhanced resistivity used in all three models. The initial stages of plasmoid formation, observed near the end of our simulations, is influenced by the outflow from the primary reconnection point, rather than by collisions. We synthesize optically thin emission for both MHD and two-fluid models, which can show a very different evolution when the charged particle density is used instead of the total density

Two-fluid implementation in MPI-AMRVAC, with applications in the solar chromosphere

The chromosphere is a partially ionized layer of the solar atmosphere, the transition between the photosphere where the gas is almost neutral and the fully ionized corona. As the collisional coupling between neutral and charged particles decreases in the upper part of the chromosphere, the hydrodynamical timescales may become comparable to the collisional timescale, and a two-fluid model is needed. In this paper we describe the implementation and validation of a two-fluid model which simultaneously evolves charges and neutrals, coupled by collisions. The two-fluid equations are implemented in the fully open-source MPI-AMRVAC code. In the photosphere and the lower part of the solar atmosphere, where collisions between charged and neutral particles are very frequent, an explicit time-marching would be too restrictive, since for stability the timestep needs to be proportional to the inverse of the collision frequency. This is overcome by evaluating the collisional terms implicitly using an explicit-implicit (IMEX) scheme. The cases presented cover very different collisional regimes and our results are fully consistent with related literature findings. If collisional time and length scales are smaller than the hydrodynamical scales usually considered in the solar chromosphere, density structures seen in the neutral and charged fluids are similar, with the effect of elastic collisions between charges and neutrals being similar to diffusivity. Otherwise, density structures are different and the decoupling in velocity between the two species increases. The use of IMEX schemes efficiently avoids the small timestep constraints of fully explicit implementations in strongly collisional regimes. Adaptive Mesh Refinement (AMR) greatly decreases the computational cost, compared to uniform grid runs at the same effective resolution.Comment: accepted for publication in A&

Three-dimensional MHD wave propagation near a coronal null point: a new wave mode decomposition approach

We present a new MHD wave decomposition method that overcomes the limitations of existing wave identification methods. Our method allows to investigate the energy fluxes in different MHD modes at different locations of the solar atmosphere as waves generated by vortex flows travel through the solar atmosphere and pass near the magnetic null. We simulate wave dynamics through a coronal null configuration and apply a rotational wave driver at our bottom photospheric boundary. To identify the wave energy fluxes associated with different MHD wave modes, we employ a wave-decomposition method that is able to uniquely distinguish different MHD modes. Our proposed method utilizes the geometry of an individual magnetic field-line in 3D space to separate out velocity perturbations associated with the three fundamental MHD waves. Our method for wave identification is consistent with previous flux-surface-based methods and gives expected results in terms of wave energy fluxes at various locations of the null configuration. We show that ubiquitous vortex flows excite MHD waves that contribute significantly to the Poynting flux in the solar corona. Alfv\'en wave energy flux accumulates on the fan surface and fast wave energy flux accumulates near the null point. There is a strong current density buildup at the spine and fan surface.The proposed method has advantages over previously utilized wave decomposition methods, since it may be employed in realistic simulations or magnetic extrapolations, as well as in real solar observations, whenever the 3D fieldline shape is known. The enhancement in energy flux associated with magneto-acoustic waves near nulls may have important implications in the formation of jets and impulsive plasma flows.Comment: Accepted for publication in A&

Magnetic field amplification and structure formation by the Rayleigh-Taylor instability

We report our results from a set of high-resolution, two-fluid, non-linear simulations of the magnetized Rayleigh Taylor instability (RTI) at the interface between a solar prominence and the corona. These data follow results reported earlier on linear and early non-linear RTI dynamics in this environment. This paper is focused on the generation and amplification of magnetic structures by RTI. The simulations use a two-fluid model that includes collisions between neutrals and charges, including ionization and recombination, energy and momentum transfer, and frictional heating. The 2.5D magnetized RTI simulations demonstrate that in a fully developed state of RTI, a large fraction of the gravitational energy of a prominence thread can be converted into quasi-turbulent energy of the magnetic field. The RTI magnetic energy generation is further accompanied by magnetic and plasma density structure formation, including dynamic formation, break-up, and merging of current sheets and plasmoid sub-structures. The flow decoupling between neutrals and charges, as well as ionization and recombination reactions, are shown to have significant impact on the structure formation in a magnetized RTI