Scaling of Ion Heating During Magnetic Reconnection: Kinetic PIC Simulations

Michael A Shay, University of Delaware, Department of Physics and Astronomy, Newark, DE, United States, Colby C Haggerty, University of Chicago, Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Chicago, United States, Christian McHugh, University of Delaware, Physics and Astronomy, Newark, DE, United States, Tai Phan, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, United States, James Frederick Drake, University of Maryland College Park, College Park, MD, United States and Marit Oieroset, University of California, Berkeley, Space Sciences Laboratory, Berkeley, United States
Abstract:
Magnetic reconnection releases stored magnetic energy in the form of fast flows and heating, and plays an important role in many heliospheric and laboratory plasmas. There is still significant uncertainty as to the ultimate destination of the released magnetic energy, whether into bulk flows, thermal heating, or energetic particle production. Using a systematic set of 2D kinetic PIC simulations, we study how inflowing plasma conditions and the electron to ion mass ratio modifies the amount of ion heating during magnetic reconnection. Consistent with recent satellite observations, we find that the primary controlling factor is the inflowing Alfven speed, or the magnetic energy per electron-ion pair. In contrast with electron heating findings, introducing a guide field substantially reduces the amount of ion heating. Possible ion heating mechanisms, and well as relative electron to ion heating energy partition, will be discussed.
Back to: Magnetic Energy Dissipation through Magnetic Reconnection in Laboratory and Heliophysical Plasmas I Posters