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Plasma acceleration by the interaction of parallel propagating Alfvén waves

Part of: Present Achievements in SpacePlasmas

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 September 2014

F. Mottez
F. Mottez*
Affiliation:
Laboratoire Univers et Théories (LUTH), Observatoire de Paris; CNRS UMR8102, Université Paris Diderot; 5 Place Jules Janssen, 92190 Meudon, France
*
†Email address for correspondence: fabrice.mottez@obspm.fr
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Abstract

It is shown that two circularly polarized Alfvén waves that propagate along the ambient magnetic field in an uniform plasma trigger non oscillating electromagnetic field components when they cross each other. The non-oscilliating field components can accelerate ions and electrons with great efficiency. This work is based on particle-in-cell (PIC) numerical simulations and on analytical non-linear computations. The analytical computations are done for two counter-propagating monochromatic waves. The simulations are done with monochromatic waves and with wave packets. The simulations show parallel electromagnetic fields consistent with the theory, and they show that the particle acceleration results in plasma cavities and, if the waves amplitudes are high enough, in ion beams. These acceleration processes could be relevant in space plasmas. For instance, they could be at work in the auroral zone and in the radiation belts of the Earth magnetosphere. In particular, they may explain the origin of the deep plasma cavities observed in the Earth auroral zone.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Plasma Physics , Volume 81 , Issue 1 , January 2015 , 325810104
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2014 

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