Imaging Spectropolarimetry with IBIS II: on the fine structure of G-band bright features

We present new results from first observations of the quiet solar photosphere performed through the Interferometric BIdimensional Spectrometer (IBIS) in spectropolarimetric mode. IBIS allowed us to measure the four Stokes parameters in the FeI 630.15 nm and FeI 630.25 nm lines with high spatial and spectral resolutions for 53 minutes; the polarimetric sensitivity achieved by the instrument is 0.003 the continuum intensity level. We focus on the correlation which emerges between G-band bright feature brightness and magnetic filling factor of ~ 1000 G (kG) fields derived by inverting Stokes I and V profiles. More in detail, we present the correlation first in a pixel-by-pixel study of an approximatively 3 arcsec wide bright feature (a small network patch) and then we show that such a result can be extended to all the bright features found in the dataset at any instant of the time sequence. The higher the kG filling factor associated to a feature the higher the brightness of the feature itself. Filling factors up to about 35 % are obtained for the brightest features. Considering the values of the filling factors derived from the inversion analysis of spectropolarimetric data and the brightness variation observed in G-band data we put forward an upper limit for the smallest scale over which magnetic flux concentrations in intergranular lanes produce a G-band brightness enhancement (~ 0.1''). Moreover, the brightness saturation observed for feature sizes comparable to the resolution of the observations is compatible with large G-band bright features being clusters of sub-arcsecond bright points. This conclusion deserves to be confirmed by forthcoming spectropolarimetric observations at higher spatial resolution.Comment: 10 pages, 7 figures, 1 table - Accepted for publication on Ap

Imaging Spectropolarimetry with IBIS: Evolution of Bright Points in the Quiet Sun

We present the results from first spectropolarimetric observations of the solar photosphere acquired at the Dunn Solar Telescope with the Interferometric Bidimensional Spectrometer. Full Stokes profiles were measured in the Fe I 630.15 nm and Fe I 630.25 nm lines with high spatial and spectral resolutions for 53 minutes, with a Stokes V noise of 0.003 the continuum intensity level. The dataset allows us to study the evolution of several magnetic features associated with G-band bright points in the quiet Sun. Here we focus on the analysis of three distinct processes, namely the coalescence, fragmentation and cancellation of G-band bright points. Our analysis is based on a SIR inversion of the Stokes I and V profiles of both Fe I lines. The high spatial resolution of the G-band images combined with the inversion results helps to interpret the undergoing physical processes. The appearance (dissolution) of high-contrast G-band bright points is found to be related to the local increase (decrease) of the magnetic filling factor, without appreciable changes in the field strength. The cancellation of opposite-polarity bright points can be the signature of either magnetic reconnection or the emergence/submergence of magnetic loops.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in ApJ Letter

Simulation of atmospheric magnetic reconnections via a dynamic model of photosphere

Abstract. We present a dynamic model of atmospheric magnetic field in which magnetic loop footpoints are advected by a velocity field computed using a simple n-body simulation and reproducing large spatial organization scales (e.g. mesogranulation). In this numerical simulation, the advection of passive magnetic elements triggers reconnection processes (occasionally multiple ones) forcing magnetic field reconfigurations and ensuing fluctuations of total magnetic energy. Our simple model reproduces a system with scale-free properties and provides probability distribution functions for emitted magnetic energies described by a power-law index α ∼ 2.4

Quiet Sun Magnetic Field Measurements Based on Lines with Hyperfine Structure

The Zeeman pattern of MnI lines is sensitive to hyperfine structure (HFS) and, they respond to hG magnetic field strengths differently from the lines used in solar magnetometry. This peculiarity has been employed to measure magnetic field strengths in quiet Sun regions. However, the methods applied so far assume the magnetic field to be constant in the resolution element. The assumption is clearly insufficient to describe the complex quiet Sun magnetic fields, biasing the results of the measurements. We present the first syntheses of MnI lines in realistic quiet Sun model atmospheres. The syntheses show how the MnI lines weaken with increasing field strength. In particular, kG magnetic concentrations produce NnI 5538 circular polarization signals (Stokes V) which can be up to two orders of magnitude smaller than the weak magnetic field approximation prediction. Consequently, (1) the polarization emerging from an atmosphere having weak and strong fields is biased towards the weak fields, and (2) HFS features characteristic of weak fields show up even when the magnetic flux and energy are dominated by kG fields. For the HFS feature of MnI 5538 to disappear the filling factor of kG fields has to be larger than the filling factor of sub-kG fields. Stokes V depends on magnetic field inclination according to the simple consine law. Atmospheres with unresolved velocities produce asymmetric line profiles, which cannot be reproduced by simple one-component model atmospheres. The uncertainty of the HFS constants do not limit the use of MnI lines for magnetometry.Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ. 10 pages, 14 figure

Asymmetries of the Stokes V profiles observed by HINODE SOT/SP in the quiet Sun

We present the first classification of SOT/SP circular polarization measurements with the aim of highlighting exhaustively the whole variety of Stokes V shapes emerging from the quiet Sun. k-means is used to classify HINODE SOT/SP Stokes V profiles observed in the quiet Sun network and internetwork (IN). We analyze a 302 x 162 square arcsec field-of-view (FOV) which can be considered a complete sample of quiet Sun measurements performed at at the disk center with 0.32 arcsec angular resolution and 0.001 polarimetric sensitivity. Such a classification allows us to divide the whole dataset in classes, with each class represented by a cluster profile, i.e., the average of the profiles in the class. The set of 35 cluster profiles derived from the analysis completely characterizes SOT/SP quiet Sun measurements. The separation between network and IN profile shapes is evident - classes in the network are not present in the IN, and vice versa. Asymmetric profiles are approximatively 93 % of the total number of profiles. Among these, approximatively 34 % of the profiles are strongly asymmetric profiles, and they can be divided in three families: blue-lobe, red-lobe, and Q-like profiles. The blue-lobe profiles tend to be associated with upflows (granules), whereas the red-lobe and Q-like ones appear in downflows (intergranular lanes). Such profiles need to be interpreted considering model atmospheres different from a uniformly magnetized Milne-Eddington (ME) atmosphere, i.e., characterized by gradients and/or discontinuities in the magnetic field and velocity along the line-of-sight (LOS).Comment: 11 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysic

High cadence spectropolarimetry of moving magnetic features observed around a pore

Moving magnetic features (MMFs) are small-size magnetic elements that are seen to stream out from sunspots, generally during their decay phase. Several observational results presented in the literature suggest them to be closely related to magnetic filaments that extend from the penumbra of the parent spot. Nevertheless, few observations of MMFs streaming out from spots without penumbra have been reported. The literature still lacks of analyses of the physical properties of these features. We investigate physical properties of monopolar MMFs observed around a small pore that had developed penumbra in the days preceding our observations and compare our results with those reported in the literature for features observed around sunspots. We analyzed NOAA 11005 during its decay phase with data acquired at the Dunn Solar Telescope in the FeI 617.3$nm and the CaII 854.2$ nm spectral lines with IBIS, and in the G-band. The field of view showed monopolar MMFs of both polarities streaming out from the leading negative polarity pore of the observed active region. Combining different analyses of the data, we investigated the temporal evolution of the relevant physical quantities associated with the MMFs as well as the photospheric and chromospheric signatures of these features. We show that the characteristics of the investigated MMFs agree with those reported in the literature for MMFs that stream out from spots with penumbrae. Moreover, observations of at least two of the observed features suggest them to be manifestations of emerging magnetic arches.Comment: Accepted by A&

Interpretation of HINODE SOT/SP asymmetric Stokes profiles observed in quiet Sun network and internetwork

We present the first interpretation of the Stokes profile asymmetries measured in the FeI 630 nm lines by SOT/SP, in both quiet Sun internetwork (IN) and network regions. The inversion is carried out under the hypothesis of MISMA, where the unresolved structure is assumed to be optically thin. We analyze a 29.52"x31.70" subfield carefully selected to be representative of the properties of a 302"x162" quiet Sun field-of-view at disk center. The inversion code is able to reproduce the observed asymmetries in a very satisfactory way. The inversion code interprets 25% of inverted profiles as emerging from pixels in which both positive and negative polarities coexist. kG field strengths are found at the base of the photosphere in both network and IN; in the case of the latter, both kG fields and hG fields are admixed. When considering the magnetic properties at the mid photosphere most kG fields are gone, and the statistics is dominated by hG fields. We constrain the magnetic field of only 4.5% of the analyzed photosphere (and this percentage reduces to 1.3% when referred to all pixels, including those with low polarization not analyzed). The rest of the plasma is consistent with the presence of weak fields not contributing to the detected polarization signals. The average flux densities derived in the full subfield and in IN regions are higher than the ones derived from the same dataset by Milne-Eddington inversion. The existence of large asymmetries in SOT/SP polarization profiles is uncovered. These are not negligible in quiet Sun data. The MISMA inversion code reproduces them in a satisfactory way, and provides a statistical description of the magnetized IN and network which partly differs and complements the results obtained so far. From this it follows the importance of having a complete interpretation of the line profile shapes.Comment: 11 pages, 9 figures, 1 table - Accepted for publication on A&

Model selection for spectro-polarimetric inversions

Inferring magnetic and thermodynamic information from spectropolarimetric observations relies on the assumption of a parameterized model atmosphere whose parameters are tuned by comparison with observations. Often, the choice of the underlying atmospheric model is based on subjective reasons. In other cases, complex models are chosen based on objective reasons (for instance, the necessity to explain asymmetries in the Stokes profiles) but it is not clear what degree of complexity is needed. The lack of an objective way of comparing models has, sometimes, led to opposing views of the solar magnetism because the inferred physical scenarios are essentially different. We present the first quantitative model comparison based on the computation of the Bayesian evidence ratios for spectropolarimetric observations. Our results show that there is not a single model appropriate for all profiles simultaneously. Data with moderate signal-to-noise ratios favor models without gradients along the line-of-sight. If the observations shows clear circular and linear polarization signals above the noise level, models with gradients along the line are preferred. As a general rule, observations with large signal-to-noise ratios favor more complex models. We demonstrate that the evidence ratios correlate well with simple proxies. Therefore, we propose to calculate these proxies when carrying out standard least-squares inversions to allow for model comparison in the future.Comment: 16 pages, 2 figures, 8 tables, accepted for publication in Ap

Multiscale magnetic underdense regions on the solar surface: Granular and Mesogranular scales

The Sun is a non-equilibrium dissipative system subjected to an energy flow which originates in its core. Convective overshooting motions create temperature and velocity structures which show a temporal and spatial evolution. As a result, photospheric structures are generally considered to be the direct manifestation of convective plasma motions. The plasma flows on the photosphere govern the motion of single magnetic elements. These elements are arranged in typical patterns which are observed as a variety of multiscale magnetic patterns. High resolution magnetograms of quiet solar surface revealed the presence of magnetic underdense regions in the solar photosphere, commonly called voids, which may be considered a signature of the underlying convective structure. The analysis of such patterns paves the way for the investigation of all turbulent convective scales from granular to global. In order to address the question of magnetic structures driven by turbulent convection at granular and mesogranular scales we used a "voids" detection method. The computed voids distribution shows an exponential behavior at scales between 2 and 10 Mm and the absence of features at 5-10 Mm mesogranular scales. The absence of preferred scales of organization in the 2-10 Mm range supports the multiscale nature of flows on the solar surface and the absence of a mesogranular convective scale

The Imaging Magnetograph eXperiment (IMaX) for the Sunrise balloon-borne solar observatory

The Imaging Magnetograph eXperiment (IMaX) is a spectropolarimeter built by four institutions in Spain that flew on board the Sunrise balloon-borne telesocope in June 2009 for almost six days over the Arctic Circle. As a polarimeter IMaX uses fast polarization modulation (based on the use of two liquid crystal retarders), real-time image accumulation, and dual beam polarimetry to reach polarization sensitivities of 0.1%. As a spectrograph, the instrument uses a LiNbO3 etalon in double pass and a narrow band pre-filter to achieve a spectral resolution of 85 mAA. IMaX uses the high Zeeman sensitive line of Fe I at 5250.2 AA and observes all four Stokes parameters at various points inside the spectral line. This allows vector magnetograms, Dopplergrams, and intensity frames to be produced that, after reconstruction, reach spatial resolutions in the 0.15-0.18 arcsec range over a 50x50 arcsec FOV. Time cadences vary between ten and 33 seconds, although the shortest one only includes longitudinal polarimetry. The spectral line is sampled in various ways depending on the applied observing mode, from just two points inside the line to 11 of them. All observing modes include one extra wavelength point in the nearby continuum. Gauss equivalent sensitivities are four Gauss for longitudinal fields and 80 Gauss for transverse fields per wavelength sample. The LOS velocities are estimated with statistical errors of the order of 5-40 m/s. The design, calibration and integration phases of the instrument, together with the implemented data reduction scheme are described in some detail.Comment: 17 figure