The relationship between electron density and electron temperature under quiet conditions in the Auroral zone

1991 ◽  
Vol 11 (10) ◽  
pp. 167-170 ◽  
Author(s):  
A.R. Breen ◽  
P.J.S. Williams
2000 ◽  
Vol 18 (7) ◽  
pp. 789-798 ◽  
Author(s):  
G.J. Bailey ◽  
Y. Z. Su ◽  
K.-I. Oyama

Abstract. Observations made by the Hinotori satellite have been analysed to determine the yearly variations of the electron density and electron temperature in the low-latitude topside ionosphere. The observations reveal the existence of an equinoctial asymmetry in the topside electron density at low latitudes, i.e. the density is higher at one equinox than at the other. The asymmetry is hemisphere-dependent with the higher electron density occurring at the March equinox in the Northern Hemisphere and at the September equinox in the Southern Hemisphere. The asymmetry becomes stronger with increasing latitude in both hemispheres. The behaviour of the asymmetry has no significant longitudinal and magnetic activity variations. A mechanism for the equinoctial asymmetry has been investigated using CTIP (coupled thermosphere ionosphere plasmasphere model). The model results reproduce the observed equinoctial asymmetry and suggest that the asymmetry is caused by the north-south imbalance of the thermosphere and ionosphere at the equinoxes due to the slow response of the thermosphere arising from the effects of the global thermospheric circulation. The observations also show that the relationship between the electron density and electron temperature is different for daytime and nighttime. During daytime the yearly variation of the electron temperature has negative correlation with the electron density, except at magnetic latitudes lower than 10°. At night, the correlation is positive.Key words: Ionosphere (equatorial ionosphere; ionosphere-atmosphere interactions; plasma temperature and density)


2000 ◽  
Vol 18 (10) ◽  
pp. 1257-1262 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. V. Pavlov ◽  
T. Abe ◽  
K.-I. Oyama

Abstract. We present a comparison of the electron density and temperature behaviour in the ionosphere and plasmasphere measured by the Millstone Hill incoherent-scatter radar and the instruments on board of the EXOS-D satellite with numerical model calculations from a time-dependent mathematical model of the Earth's ionosphere and plasmasphere during the geomagnetically quiet and storm period on 20–30 January, 1993. We have evaluated the value of the additional heating rate that should be added to the normal photoelectron heating in the electron energy equation in the daytime plasmasphere region above 5000 km along the magnetic field line to explain the high electron temperature measured by the instruments on board of the EXOS-D satellite within the Millstone Hill magnetic field flux tube in the Northern Hemisphere. The additional heating brings the measured and modelled electron temperatures into agreement in the plasmasphere and into very large disagreement in the ionosphere if the classical electron heat flux along magnetic field line is used in the model. A new approach, based on a new effective electron thermal conductivity coefficient along the magnetic field line, is presented to model the electron temperature in the ionosphere and plasmasphere. This new approach leads to a heat flux which is less than that given by the classical Spitzer-Harm theory. The evaluated additional heating of electrons in the plasmasphere and the decrease of the thermal conductivity in the topside ionosphere and the greater part of the plasmasphere found for the first time here allow the model to accurately reproduce the electron temperatures observed by the instruments on board the EXOS-D satellite in the plasmasphere and the Millstone Hill incoherent-scatter radar in the ionosphere. The effects of the daytime additional plasmaspheric heating of electrons on the electron temperature and density are small at the F-region altitudes if the modified electron heat flux is used. The deviations from the Boltzmann distribution for the first five vibrational levels of N2(v) and O2(v) were calculated. The present study suggests that these deviations are not significant at the first vibrational levels of N2 and O2 and the second level of O2, and the calculated distributions of N2(v) and O2(v) are highly non-Boltzmann at vibrational levels v > 2. The resulting effect of N2(v > 0) and O2(v > 0) on NmF2 is the decrease of the calculated daytime NmF2 up to a factor of 1.5. The modelled electron temperature is very sensitive to the electron density, and this decrease in electron density results in the increase of the calculated daytime electron temperature up to about 580 K at the F2 peak altitude giving closer agreement between the measured and modelled electron temperatures. Both the daytime and night-time densities are not reproduced by the model without N2(v > 0) and O2(v > 0), and inclusion of vibrationally excited N2 and O2 brings the model and data into better agreement.Key words: Ionosphere (ionospheric disturbances; ionosphere-magnetosphere interactions; plasma temperature and density)  


2017 ◽  
Vol 35 (6) ◽  
pp. 1275-1291 ◽  
Author(s):  
Allan R. Macneil ◽  
Christopher J. Owen ◽  
Robert T. Wicks

Abstract. The development of knowledge of how the coronal origin of the solar wind affects its in situ properties is one of the keys to understanding the relationship between the Sun and the heliosphere. In this paper, we analyse ACE/SWICS and WIND/3DP data spanning  > 12 years, and test properties of solar wind suprathermal electron distributions for the presence of signatures of the coronal temperature at their origin which may remain at 1 AU. In particular we re-examine a previous suggestion that these properties correlate with the oxygen charge state ratio O7+ ∕ O6+, an established proxy for coronal electron temperature. We find only a very weak but variable correlation between measures of suprathermal electron energy content and O7+ ∕ O6+. The weak nature of the correlation leads us to conclude, in contrast to earlier results, that an initial relationship with core electron temperature has the possibility to exist in the corona, but that in most cases no strong signatures remain in the suprathermal electron distributions at 1 AU. It cannot yet be confirmed whether this is due to the effects of coronal conditions on the establishment of this relationship or due to the altering of the electron distributions by processing during transport in the solar wind en route to 1 AU. Contrasting results for the halo and strahl population favours the latter interpretation. Confirmation of this will be possible using Solar Orbiter data (cruise and nominal mission phase) to test whether the weakness of the relationship persists over a range of heliocentric distances. If the correlation is found to strengthen when closer to the Sun, then this would indicate an initial relationship which is being degraded, perhaps by wave–particle interactions, en route to the observer.


Coatings ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (10) ◽  
pp. 1221
Author(s):  
Jun-Hyoung Park ◽  
Ji-Ho Cho ◽  
Jung-Sik Yoon ◽  
Jung-Ho Song

We present a non-invasive approach for monitoring plasma parameters such as the electron temperature and density inside a radio-frequency (RF) plasma nitridation device using optical emission spectroscopy (OES) in conjunction with multivariate data analysis. Instead of relying on a theoretical model of the plasma emission to extract plasma parameters from the OES, an empirical correlation was established on the basis of simultaneous OES and other diagnostics. Additionally, we developed a machine learning (ML)-based virtual metrology model for real-time Te and ne monitoring in plasma nitridation processes using an in situ OES sensor. The results showed that the prediction accuracy of electron density was 97% and that of electron temperature was 90%. This method is especially useful in plasma processing because it provides in-situ and real-time analysis without disturbing the plasma or interfering with the process.


2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (27) ◽  
pp. 76-82
Author(s):  
Kadhim A. Aadim

Low-pressure capacitively coupled RF discharge Ar plasma has been studied using Langmuir probe. The electron temperature, electron density and Debay length were calculated under different pressures and electrode gap. In this work the RF Langmuir probe is designed using 4MHz filter as compensation circuit and I-V probe characteristic have been investigated. The pressure varied from 0.07 mbar to 0.1 mbar while electrode gap varied from 2-5 cm. The plasma was generated using power supply at 4MHz frequency with power 300 W. The flowmeter is used to control Argon gas flow in the range of 600 standard cubic centimeters per minute (sccm). The electron temperature drops slowly with pressure and it's gradually decreased when expanding the electrode gap. As the gas pressure increases, the plasma density rises slightly at low gas pressure while it drops little at higher gas pressure. The electron density decreases rapidly with expand distances between electrodes.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document