Field-Aligned Electric Potential in the Polar Cap

Abstract:

Reconnection with the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) on the dayside magnetosphere opens the previously closed Earth’s field line, allowing solar wind particles to enter the magnetosphere, some of which precipitate into the ionosphere. As the open-field line ExB convects to the nightside, fewer ions can enter the magnetosphere. As a result, field-aligned (parallel) electric potential increases with latitude to prevent more electrons from entering, in order to maintain charge quasi-neutrality. The APL open-field line model predicts that the parallel potential drop increases from cusp to mantle to polar rain. This trend has been confirmed in a study that compared phase space densities of ACE solar wind electrons to those of DMSP precipitating electrons. However, the same study also found that sometimes there is an anomaly: the parallel potential drop would have the opposite polarity such that solar wind electrons are accelerated downward in the afternoon polar cap. Using DMSP magnetometer and particle precipitation data, we show that this accelerating potential drop can be found often in the poleward upward field-aligned current region. The velocity shear at the magnetopause boundary leads to a voltage drop across the boundary, which drives the upward field-aligned currents. At higher latitude or further away from noon, the field line maps to the magnetopause location that is further down the magnetotail where the magnetosheath velocity shear is higher and density is lower. When the velocity shear and hence field-aligned current density (J_//) is too high or density too low, parallel potential develops to accelerate more electron downward, in accordance with Knight relation.