Particle Acceleration at Oblique CME-driven Shock Using Improved PATH Model

Abstract:

.Gradual solar energetic particle (SEP) events are generally accepted to be caused by particle acceleration at coronal mass ejection(CME)-driven shocks. In this work we improved the PATH(Particle Acceleration and Transport in the Heliosphere) model by initiating a 2D CME-driven shock to investigate particle acceleration at different locations of an oblique CME-drive shock, where the shock has different obliquity angle(θ_BN). Thus we can study problems like whether quasi-perpendicular or quasi-parallel shock is more efficient in particle acceleration.The PATH model is based on the diffusive shock acceleration mechanism. The core of the model consists of a 3D Zeus module, which computes numerically the background solar wind and the CME-drive shock as inputs; and a shell module where the convection and diffusion of accelerated particles within the shock complex are followed. The 2D CME-driven shock is generated by perturbing the boundary condition of a steady background solar wind in certain patterns.