Physics
Scientific paper
Dec 2009
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2009agufmsm21a1563b&link_type=abstract
American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2009, abstract #SM21A-1563
Physics
[2723] Magnetospheric Physics / Magnetic Reconnection, [2724] Magnetospheric Physics / Magnetopause And Boundary Layers
Scientific paper
Kinetic simulations are of great importance for the studies fine current sheets in collisionless plasmas. However they come with the drawback of the initial state. If one can setup a fluid equilibrium easily no matter what are the density, pressure and magnetic field profiles, finding the Vlasov-Maxwell equilibrium necessary to setup a steady initial state in a kinetic simulation is way more difficult. One steady distribution has been found by Harris (the so-called Harris equilibrium, 1962), and is extensively used as an initial setup. Unfortunately this distribution, gives symmetric moments profiles and thus cannot be used to describe an asymmetric steady current sheet. In this situation one has for the moment no choice but to study the reconnection starting with an unsatisfactory fluid equilibrium and a local Maxwellian distribution function. This local Maxwellian is not steady and gives rise to plasma perturbations and wave emissions. Using the 2D Hybrid approximation, we present a new way to find a steady solution to the Vlasov equation, that models an asymmetric current sheet. Contrary to the usual research method of Vlasov equilibrium, that supposes both the electrons and ions distribution algebraic form to be known and then calculate the electromagnetic (EM) fields via Maxwell's equations, the hybrid approximation allows us to set the EM fields a priori supposing that we only know the algebraic form of the ions distribution. The electrons are then considered to be in a magnetohydrostatic equilibrium so that the system is closed. This powerfull new semi-analytical method can successfully create a steady distribution function for the ions in an asymmetric current sheet and thus can, among other applications, be used to initialize properly 2D Hybrid simulations.
Aunai N.
Belmont Gérard
Smets Roch
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