Bibliography

The First Observation of N+ Electromagnetic Ion Cyclotron Waves

Abstract Observations from past space missions report on the significant abundance of N+, in addition to those of O+, outflowing from the terrestrial ionosphere and populating the near-Earth region. However, instruments on board current space missions lack the mass resolution to distinguish between the two, and often the role of N+ in regulating the magnetosphere dynamics, is lumped together with that of O+ ions. For instance, our understanding regarding the role of electromagnetic ion cyclotron (EMIC) waves in controlling the loss and acceleration of radiation belt electrons and ring current ions has been based on the contribution of He+ and O+ ions only. We report the first observations by Van Allen Probes of linearly polarized N+ EMIC waves, which confirm the presence of N+ in the terrestrial magnetosphere, and open up new avenues to particle energization, loss, and transport mechanisms, based on the altered magnetospheric plasma composition.

Bashir, Fraz; Ilie, Raluca;

Published by: Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics      Published on: 02/2021

YEAR: 2021     DOI: https://doi.org/10.1029/2020JA028716

electromagnetic ion cyclotron waves; heavy ions; Van Allen Probes; N+ EMIC Wave; Wave-particle interaction; inner magnetosphere

Electron nonlinear resonant interaction with short and intense parallel chorus wave-packets

One of the major drivers of radiation belt dynamics, electron resonant interaction with whistler-mode chorus waves, is traditionally described using the quasi-linear diffusion approximation. Such a description satisfactorily explains many observed phenomena, but its applicability can be justified only for sufficiently low intensity, long duration waves. Recent spacecraft observations of a large number of very intense lower band chorus waves (with magnetic field amplitudes sometimes reaching \~1\% of the background) therefore challenge this traditional description, and call for an alternative approach when addressing the global, long-term effects of the nonlinear interaction of these waves with radiation belt electrons. In this paper, we first use observations from the Van Allen Probes and Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions during Substorms (THEMIS) spacecraft to show that the majority of intense parallel chorus waves consists of relatively short wave-packets. Then, we construct a kinetic equation describing the nonlinear resonant interaction of radiation belt electrons with such short and intense wave-packets. We demonstrate that this peculiar type of nonlinear interaction produces similar effects as quasi-linear diffusion, i.e., a flattening of the electron velocity distribution function within a certain energy/pitch-angle range. The main difference is the much faster evolution of the electron distribution when nonlinear interaction prevails.

Mourenas, D.; Zhang, X.-J.; Artemyev, A.; Angelopoulos, V.; Thorne, R.; Bortnik, J.; Neishtadt, A.; Vasiliev, A.;

Published by: Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics      Published on: 05/2018

YEAR: 2018     DOI: 10.1029/2018JA025417

chorus waves; ; kinetic equation; nonlinear interaction; Radiation belts; short wave-packets; trapping; Van Allen Probes

Fast transport of resonant electrons in phase space due to nonlinear trapping by whistler waves

We present an analytical, simplified formulation accounting for the fast transport of relativistic electrons in phase space due to wave-particle resonant interactions in the inhomogeneous magnetic field of Earth\textquoterights radiation belts. We show that the usual description of the evolution of the particle velocity distribution based on the Fokker-Planck equation can be modified to incorporate nonlinear processes of wave-particle interaction, including particle trapping. Such a modification consists in one additional operator describing fast particle jumps in phase space. The proposed, general approach is used to describe the acceleration of relativistic electrons by oblique whistler waves in the radiation belts. We demonstrate that for a wave power distribution with a hard enough power law tail inline image such that η < 5/2, the efficiency of nonlinear acceleration could be more effective than the conventional quasi-linear acceleration for 100 keV electrons.

Artemyev, A.; Vasiliev, A.; Mourenas, D.; Agapitov, O.; Krasnoselskikh, V.; Boscher, D.; Rolland, G.;

Published by: Geophysical Research Letters      Published on: 08/2014

YEAR: 2014     DOI: 10.1002/grl.v41.1610.1002/2014GL061380

particle trapping; Radiation belts; Wave-particle interaction