scholarly journals Non-Markovian Pitch-angle Scattering as the Origin of Particle Superdiffusion Parallel to the Magnetic Field

2020 ◽  
Vol 903 (2) ◽  
pp. 105
Author(s):  
Gaetano Zimbardo ◽  
Silvia Perri
2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maximilian Bruedern ◽  
Nina Dresing ◽  
Bernd Heber ◽  
Lars Berger ◽  
Alexander Kollhoff ◽  
...  

<p>With the launch of Solar Orbiter (SolO) Solar Energetic Particles (SEPs) can be observed at a radial distance of 0.284 to 0.9 AU and an inclination out of the ecliptic up to 34 degree. The properties of SEP observations carry information about their source at the Sun as well as their transport through the interplanetary medium. Their energy is mostly determined close to the Sun. As SEPs propagate outward along the Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF) the pitch-angle with respect to the local field is systematically focused due to the radially decreasing IMF. However, stochastic changes are induced by scattering at fluctuations of the IMF. Often the first order anisotropy of SEPs is calculated to disentangle imprints of source and transport. Strong anisotropies indicate periods of weak pitch-angle scattering. Although many modeling and observational studies are based on the anisotropy, its uncertainty is often neglected which could result in inaccurate conclusions. Therefore, we propose a new method based on a bootstrap approach where we consider (1) directional instrument responses, (2) the variation of the magnetic field, and (3) the stochastic nature of detection. Here, we present our procedure and final results for different SEP events using measured data of the IMF and particle fluxes by the Solar Electron and Proton Telescope (SEPT) on board of each STEREO spacecraft. The SEPT provides four viewing directions with a view cone of 0.66 sr each on a three axis stabilized spacecraft. In contrast the Electron and Proton Telescope (EPT) on board SolO also consists of four viewing directions but each telescope has a much smaller view cone of 0.21 sr. Due to the very similar instrument setup we can apply our method both to the SEPT and EPT.</p>


2009 ◽  
Vol 27 (10) ◽  
pp. 4057-4067 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. J. Owens ◽  
N. U. Crooker ◽  
T. S. Horbury

Abstract. Magnetic clouds are a subset of interplanetary coronal mass ejections characterized by a smooth rotation in the magnetic field direction, which is interpreted as a signature of a magnetic flux rope. Suprathermal electron observations indicate that one or both ends of a magnetic cloud typically remain connected to the Sun as it moves out through the heliosphere. With distance from the axis of the flux rope, out toward its edge, the magnetic field winds more tightly about the axis and electrons must traverse longer magnetic field lines to reach the same heliocentric distance. This increased time of flight allows greater pitch-angle scattering to occur, meaning suprathermal electron pitch-angle distributions should be systematically broader at the edges of the flux rope than at the axis. We model this effect with an analytical magnetic flux rope model and a numerical scheme for suprathermal electron pitch-angle scattering and find that the signature of a magnetic flux rope should be observable with the typical pitch-angle resolution of suprathermal electron data provided ACE's SWEPAM instrument. Evidence of this signature in the observations, however, is weak, possibly because reconnection of magnetic fields within the flux rope acts to intermix flux tubes.


1966 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 309 ◽  

Height distributions are presented for the atmospheric ionization rate and Balmer radiation resulting from precipitation of auroral protons. These results have been computed assuming proton fluxes with several different energy spectra and pitch-angle distributions about the magnetic field, the total proton energy range being restricted to 1-1000 keY.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul M. Bellan

<p>The interaction between a circularly polarized electromagnetic wave and an energetic gyrating particle is described [1] using a relativistic pseudo-potential that is a function of the frequency mismatch,  a measure of the extent to which ω-k<sub>z</sub>v<sub>z</sub>=Ω/γ is not true. The description of this wave-particle interaction involves a sequence of relativistic transformations that ultimately demonstrate that the pseudo potential energy of a pseudo particle adds to a pseudo kinetic energy giving a total pseudo energy that is a constant of the motion. The pseudo kinetic energy is proportional to the square of the particle acceleration (compare to normal kinetic energy which is the square of a velocity) and the pseudo potential energy is a function of the mismatch and so effectively a function of the particle velocity parallel to the background magnetic field (compare to normal potential energy which is a function of position). Analysis of the pseudo-potential provides a means for interpreting particle motion in the wave in a manner analogous to the analysis of a normal particle bouncing in a conventional potential well.  The wave-particle  interaction is electromagnetic and so differs from and is more complicated than the well-known Landau damping of electrostatic waves.  The pseudo-potential profile depends on the initial mismatch, the normalized wave amplitude, and the initial angle between the wave magnetic field and the particle perpendicular velocity. For zero initial mismatch, the pseudo-potential consists of only one valley, but for finite mismatch, there can be two valleys separated by a hill. A large pitch angle scattering of the energetic electron can occur in the two-valley situation but fast scattering can also occur in a single valley. Examples relevant to magnetospheric whistler waves are discussed. Extension to the situation of a distribution of relativistic particles is presented in a companion talk [2].</p><p>[1] P. M. Bellan, Phys. Plasmas 20, Art. No. 042117 (2013)</p><p>[2] Y. D. Yoon and P. M. Bellan, JGR 125, Art. No. e2020JA027796 (2020)</p>


2016 ◽  
Vol 121 (5) ◽  
pp. 4103-4110 ◽  
Author(s):  
Y. C. Zhang ◽  
C. Shen ◽  
A. Marchaudon ◽  
Z. J. Rong ◽  
B. Lavraud ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
Vol 922 (2) ◽  
pp. 271
Author(s):  
Ding Sheng ◽  
Kaijun Liu ◽  
V. Florinski ◽  
J. D. Perez

Abstract Hybrid simulations in 2D space and 3D velocity dimensions with continuous injection of pickup ions (PUIs) provide insight into the plasma processes that are responsible for the pitch angle scattering of PUIs outside the heliopause. The present investigation includes for the first time continuous injection of PUIs and shows how the scattering depends on the energy of the PUIs and the strength of the background magnetic field as well as the dependence on the injection rate of the time for the isotropization of the pitch angle distribution. The results demonstrate that, with the gradual injection of PUIs of a narrow ring velocity distribution perpendicular to the background magnetic field, oblique mirror mode waves develop first, followed by the growth of quasiparallel propagating ion cyclotron waves. Subsequently, the PUIs are scattered by the excited waves and gradually approach an isotropic distribution. A time for isotropization is defined to be the time at which T ∣∣/T ⊥, i.e., the ratio of the parallel to perpendicular PUI thermal energy changes from ≈0 to ≈0.15. By varying the PUI injection rate, estimates of the time for the PUI distribution to be isotropized are presented. The isotropization time obtained is shorter, ≈ months, than the time, ≈ years, required by the conventional secondary ENA mechanism to explain the IBEX ENA ribbon.


2006 ◽  
Vol 24 (11) ◽  
pp. 3151-3159 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. J. Lee ◽  
G. K. Parks ◽  
K. W. Min ◽  
M. P. McCarthy ◽  
E. S. Lee ◽  
...  

Abstract. Relativistic electron dropout (RED) events are characterized by fast electron flux decrease at the geostationary orbit. It is known that the main loss process is non adiabatic and more effective for the high energy particles. RED events generally start to occur at midnight sector and propagate to noon sector and are correlated with magnetic field stretching. In this paper, we discuss this kind of event can be caused from pitch angle diffusion induced when the gyro radius of the electrons is comparable to the radius of curvature of the magnetic field and the magnetic moment is not conserved any more. While this process has been studied theoretically, the question is whether electron precipitation could be explained with this process for the real field configuration. This paper will show that this process can successfully explain the precipitation that occurred on 14 June 2004 observed by the low-altitude (680 km) polar orbiting Korean satellite, STSAT-1. In this precipitation event, the energy dispersion showed higher energy electron precipitation occurred at lower L values. This feature is a good indicator that precipitation was caused by the magnetic moment scattering in the geomagnetic tail. This interpretation is supported by the geosynchronous satellite GOES observations that showed significant magnetic field distortion occurred on the night side accompanying the electron flux depletion. Tsyganenko-01 model also shows the magnetic moment scattering could occur under the geomagnetic conditions existing at that time. We suggest the pitch angle scattering by field curvature violating the first adiabatic invariant as a possible candidate for loss mechanism of relativistic electrons in radiation belt.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Young Dae Yoon ◽  
Paul Bellan

<p>A recent study and a companion talk [1] showed that an exact rearrangement of the relativistic particle equation of motion under a coherent circularly-polarized electromagnetic wave leads to an equation describing the motion of the “frequency mismatch” parameter ξ under a pseudo-potential ψ(ξ). When the particle undergoes a so-called “two-valley motion” in ξ-space, it experiences large changes in ξ and thus its pitch-angle because ξ is a function of the particle’s velocity parallel to the background magnetic field. This single-particle analysis is extended [2] to a distribution of relativistic particles. First, the condition for two-valley motion is derived with parameters relevant to magnetospheric contexts. Single-particle simulations verify that particles which satisfy this condition indeed undergo large pitch-angle fluctuations. Second, assuming a relativistic Maxwellian particle distribution, the fraction of particles that undergo two-valley motion is analytically derived and is numerically verified by Monte-Carlo simulations. A significant fraction (1% - 5%) of the distribution undergoes two-valley motion for typical magnetospheric parameters. For sufficiently fast interactions where a uniform background magnetic field and a constant wave frequency can be assumed, the widely-used second-order trapping theory [3] is shown to be an erroneous approximation of the present theory.</p><p> </p><p>[1] P. M. Bellan, Phys. Plasmas, 20 (4), Art. No. 042117 (2013)</p><p>[2] Y. D. Yoon and P. M. Bellan, JGR Space Physics, 125 (6), Art. No. e2020JA027796 (2020)</p><p>[3] D. Nunn, Planet. and Space Sci., 22 (3), 349-378 (1974)</p><p> </p>


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