Slow solitary waves in multi-layered magnetic structures

The propagation of slow sausage surface waves in a multi-layered magnetic configuration is considered. The magnetic configuration consists of a central magnetic slab sandwiched between two identical magnetic slabs (with equilibrium quantities different from those in the central slab) which in turn are embedded between two identical semi-infinite regions. The dispersion equation is obtained in the linear approximation. The nonlinear governing equation describing waves with a characteristic wavelength along the central slab much larger than the slab thickness is derived. Solitary wave solutions to this equation are obtained in the case where these solutions deviate only slightly from the algebraic soliton of the Benjamin-Ono equation

A Contemporary View of Coronal Heating

Determining the heating mechanism (or mechanisms) that causes the outer atmosphere of the Sun, and many other stars, to reach temperatures orders of magnitude higher than their surface temperatures has long been a key problem. For decades the problem has been known as the coronal heating problem, but it is now clear that `coronal heating' cannot be treated or explained in isolation and that the heating of the whole solar atmosphere must be studied as a highly coupled system. The magnetic field of the star is known to play a key role, but, despite significant advancements in solar telescopes, computing power and much greater understanding of theoretical mechanisms, the question of which mechanism or mechanisms are the dominant supplier of energy to the chromosphere and corona is still open. Following substantial recent progress, we consider the most likely contenders and discuss the key factors that have made, and still make, determining the actual (coronal) heating mechanism (or mechanisms) so difficult

Rayleigh-Taylor instabilities with sheared magnetic fields in partially ionised plasmas

Aims. In the present study we investigate the nature of the magnetic Rayleigh-Taylor instability appearing at a tangential discontinuity in a partially ionised plasma when the effect of magnetic shear is taken into account. Methods. The partially ionised character of the plasma is described by the ambipolar diffusion in the induction equation. The dynamics of the plasma is investigated in a single-fluid approximation. After matching the solutions on both sides of the interface we derive a dispersion equation and calculate the instability increment using analytical methods for particular cases of parameters, and numerical investigation for a wide range of parameters. Results. We calculated the dependence of the instability increment on the perturbation wavenumber. We also calculated the dependence of the maximum instability increment on the shear angle of the magnetic field for various values of the ionisation degree. Conclusions. Our results show that the Rayleigh-Taylor instability becomes sensitive to the degree of plasma ionisation only for plasmas with small values of plasma beta and in a very weakly ionised state. Perturbations are unstable only for those wavenumbers that are below a cut-off value

Propagation of leaky surface waves on contact magnetohydrodynamic discontinuities in incompressible plasmas

We study the wave propagation on a magnetohydrodynamic contact discontinuity. Using the Laplace transform, we obtain the solution to the initial value problem describing the evolution of a perturbation of the discontinuity. We use this solution to study the leaky modes that determine the asymptotic behaviour of the solution for large time. We find the approximate expressions describing the leaky modes for a small inclination angle of the magnetic field. We also discuss the transition to the tangential discontinuity as the inclination angle tends to zero. We show that there is no continuous transition from the leaky modes on a contact discontinuity to the surface modes on a tangential discontinuity. However, such a transition exists if we take the average quantities describing the leaky modes

Transverse oscillations of coronal loops

On 14 July 1998 TRACE observed transverse oscillations of a coronal loop generated by an external disturbance most probably caused by a solar flare. These oscillations were interpreted as standing fast kink waves in a magnetic flux tube. Firstly, in this review we embark on the discussion of the theory of waves and oscillations in a homogeneous straight magnetic cylinder with the particular emphasis on fast kink waves. Next, we consider the effects of stratification, loop expansion, loop curvature, non-circular cross-section, loop shape and magnetic twist. An important property of observed transverse coronal loop oscillations is their fast damping. We briefly review the different mechanisms suggested for explaining the rapid damping phenomenon. After that we concentrate on damping due to resonant absorption. We describe the latest analytical results obtained with the use of thin transition layer approximation, and then compare these results with numerical findings obtained for arbitrary density variation inside the flux tube. Very often collective oscillations of an array of coronal magnetic loops are observed. It is natural to start studying this phenomenon from the system of two coronal loops. We describe very recent analytical and numerical results of studying collective oscillations of two parallel homogeneous coronal loops. The implication of the theoretical results for coronal seismology is briefly discussed. We describe the estimates of magnetic field magnitude obtained from the observed fundamental frequency of oscillations, and the estimates of the coronal scale height obtained using the simultaneous observations of the fundamental frequency and the frequency of the first overtone of kink oscillations. In the last part of the review we summarise the most outstanding and acute problems in the theory of the coronal loop transverse oscillations

Leakage of waves from coronal loops by wave tunneling

To better understand the decay of vertically polarised fast kink modes of coronal loops by the mechanism of wave tunneling, simulations are performed of fast kink modes in straight flux slabs which have Alfvén speed profiles which include a tunneling region. The decay rates are found to be determined by the mode number of the trapped mode and the thickness of the tunneling region. Two analytical models are suggested to explain the observed decay. The first is a extension of the work of Roberts (1981, Sol. Phys., 69, 39) to include a finite thickness tunneling region, and the second is a simpler model which yields an analytical solution for the relationship between decay rate, period and the thickness of the tunneling region. The decay rates for these straight slabs are found to be slower than in observations and those found in a previous paper on the subject by Brady & Arber (2005, A&A, 438, 733) using curved flux slabs. It is found that the difference between the straight slabs used here and the curved slabs used in Brady & Arber (2005, A&A, 438, 733) can be represented as a geometric correction to the decay rate

The effect of flows on transverse oscillations of coronal loops

In this paper we study kink oscillations of coronal loops in the presence of flows. Using the thin-tube approximation we derive the general governing equation for kink oscillations of a loop with the density varying along the loop in the presence of flows. This equation remains valid even when the density and flow are time dependent. The derived equation is then used to study the effect of flows on eigenfrequencies of kink oscillations of coronal loops. The implication of the obtained results on coronal seismology is discussed

Diversity of behavior after collisions of Sn and Si nanoparticles found using a new Density-Functional Tight-Binding model

We present a new approach to studying nanoparticle collisions using Density Functional based Tight Binding (DFTB). A novel DFTB parameterisation has been developed to study the collision process of Sn and Si nanoparticles (NPs) using Molecular Dynamics (MD). While bulk structures were used as training sets, we show that our model is able to accurately reproduce the cohesive energy of the nanoparticles using Density Functional Theory (DFT) as a reference. A surprising variety of phenomena are revealed for the Si/Sn nanoparticle collisions, depending on the size and velocity of the collision: from core-shell structure formation to bounce-off phenomena.Comment: 13 pages, 15 figure