Features of ion acoustic waves in collisional plasmas

The effects of friction on the ion acoustic (IA) wave in fully and partially ionized plasmas are studied. In a quasi-neutral electron-ion plasma the friction between the two species cancels out exactly and the wave propagates without any damping. If the Poisson equation is used instead of the quasi-neutrality, however, the IA wave is damped and the damping is dispersive. In a partially ionized plasma, the collisions with the neutrals modify the IA wave beyond recognition. For a low density of neutrals the mode is damped. Upon increasing the neutral density, the mode becomes first evanescent and then reappears for a still larger number of neutrals. A similar behavior is obtained by varying the mode wave-length. The explanation for this behavior is given. In an inhomogeneous plasma placed in an external magnetic field, and for magnetized electrons and un-magnetized ions, the IA mode propagates in any direction and in this case the collisions make it growing on the account of the energy stored in the density gradient. The growth rate is angle dependent. A comparison with the collision-less kinetic density gradient driven IA instability is also given.Comment: The following article has been accepted by Physics of Plasmas. After it is published, it will be found at http://pop.aip.org

Solar nanoflares and other smaller energy release events as growing drift waves

Rapid energy releases (RERs) in the solar corona extend over many orders of magnitude, the largest (flares) releasing an energy of $10^{25}$J or more. Other events, with a typical energy that is a billion times less, are called nanoflares. A basic difference between flares and nanoflares is that flares need a larger magnetic field and thus occur only in active regions, while nanoflares can appear everywhere. The origin of such RERs is usually attributed to magnetic reconnection that takes place at altitudes just above the transition region. Here we show that nanoflares and smaller similar RERs can be explained within the drift wave theory as a natural stage in the kinetic growth of the drift wave. In this scenario, a growing mode with a sufficiently large amplitude leads to stochastic heating that can provide an energy release of over $10^{16}$J

Numerical simulations of a flux rope ejection

Coronal mass ejections (CMEs) are the most violent phenomena observed on the Sun. One of the most successful models to explain CMEs is the flux rope ejection model, where a magnetic flux rope is expelled from the solar corona after a long phase along which the flux rope stays in equilibrium while magnetic energy is being accumulated. However, still many questions are outstanding on the detailed mechanism of the ejection and observations continuously provide new data to interpret and put in the context. Currently, extreme ultraviolet (EUV) images from the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) on board the Solar Dynamic Observatory (SDO) are providing new insights into the early phase of CME evolution. In particular, observations show the ejection of magnetic flux ropes from the solar corona and how they evolve into CMEs. However, these observations are difficult to interpret in terms of basic physical mechanisms and quantities, thus, we need to compare equivalent quantities to test and improve our models. In our work, we intend to bridge the gap between models and observations with our model of flux rope ejection where we consistently describe the full life span of a flux rope from its formation to ejection. This is done by coupling the global non-linear force-free model (GNLFFF) built to describe the slow low- β formation phase, with a full MHD simulation run with the software MPI-AMRVAC, suitable to describe the fast MHD evolution of the flux rope ejection that happens in a heterogeneous β regime. We also explore the parameter space to identify the conditions upon which the ejection is favoured (gravity stratification and magnetic field intensity) and we produce synthesised AIA observations (171 Å and 211 Å). To carry this out, we run 3D MHD simulation in spherical coordinates where we include the role of thermal conduction and radiative losses, both of which are important for determining the temperature distribution of the solar corona during a CME. Our model of flux rope ejection is successful in realistically describing the entire life span of a flux rope and we also set some conditions for the backgroud solar corona to favour the escape of the flux rope, so that it turns into a CME. Furthermore, our MHD simulation reproduces many of the features found in the AIA observations.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Nonlinear three wave interaction in pair plasmas

It is shown that nonlinear three-wave interaction, described by vector-product type nonlinearities, in pair plasmas implies much more restrictive conditions for a double energy transfer, as compared to electron-ion plasmas

Is the Weibel instability enhanced by the suprathermal populations, or not?

The kinetic instabilities of the Weibel-type are presently invoked in a large variety of astrophysical scenarios because anisotropic plasma structures are ubiquitous in space. The Weibel instability is driven by a temperature anisotropy which is commonly modeled by a bi-axis distribution function, such as a bi-Maxwellian or a generalized bi-Kappa. Previous studies have been limited to a bi-Kappa distribution and found a suppression of this instability in the presence of suprathermal tails. In the present paper it is shown that the Weibel growth rate is rather more sensitive to the shape of the anisotropic distribution function. In order to illustrate the distinguishing properties of this instability a \emph{product-bi-Kappa distribution} is introduced, with the advantage that this distribution function enables the use of different values of the spectral index in the two directions, $\kappa_{\parallel} \ne \kappa_{\perp}$. The growth rates and the instability threshold are derived and contrasted with those for a simple bi-Kappa and a bi-Maxwellian. Thus, while the maximum growth rates reached at the saturation are found to be higher, the threshold is drastically reduced making the anisotropic product-bi-Kappa (with small kappas) highly susceptible to the Weibel instability. This effect could also rise questions on the temperature or the temperature anisotropy that seems to be not an exclusive source of free energy for this instability, and definition of these notions for such Kappa distributions must probably be reconsidered

Effects of suprathermal electrons on the proton temperature anisotropy in space plasmas: Electromagnetic ion-cyclotron instability

In collision-poor plasmas from space, e.g., the solar wind and planetary magnetospheres, the kinetic anisotropy of the plasma particles is expected to be regulated by the kinetic instabilities. Driven by an excess of ion (proton) temperature perpendicular to the magnetic field $(~T_\perp >T_\parallel)$, the electromagnetic ion-cyclotron (EMIC) instability is fast enough to constrain the proton anisotropy, but the observations do not conform to the instability thresholds predicted by the standard theory for bi-Maxwellian models of the plasma particles. This paper presents an extended investigation of the EMIC instability in the presence of suprathermal electrons which are ubiquitous in these environments. The analysis is based on the kinetic (Vlasov-Maxwell) theory assuming that both species, protons and electrons, may be anisotropic, and the EMIC unstable solutions are derived numerically providing an accurate description for conditions typically encountered in space plasmas. The effects of suprathermal populations are triggered by the electron anisotropy and the temperature contrast between electrons and protons. For certain conditions the anisotropy thresholds exceed the limits of the proton anisotropy measured in the solar wind considerably restraining the unstable regimes of the EMIC modes.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astrophysics and space scienc