A. Greco

A kinetic model of plasma turbulence

A Hybrid Vlasov–Maxwell (HVM) model is presented and recent results about the link between kinetic effects and turbulence are reviewed. Using five-dimensional (2D in space and 3D in the velocity space) simulations of plasma turbulence, it is found that kinetic effects (or non-fluid effects) manifest through the deformation of the proton velocity distribution function (DF), with patterns of non-Maxwellian features being concentrated near regions of strong magnetic gradients. The direction of the proper temperature anisotropy , calculated in the main reference frame of the distribution itself, has a finite probability of being along or across the ambient magnetic field, in general agreement with the classical definition of anisotropy T ⊥ / T ∥ (where subscripts refer to the magnetic field direction). Adopting the latter conventional definition, by varying the global plasma beta (β) and fluctuation level, simulations explore distinct regions of the space given by T ⊥ / T ∥ and β ∥ , recovering solar wind observations. Moreover, as in the solar wind, HVM simulations suggest that proton anisotropy is not only associated with magnetic intermittent events, but also with gradient-type structures in the flow and in the density. The role of alpha particles is reviewed using multi-ion kinetic simulations, revealing a similarity between proton and helium non-Maxwellian effects. The techniques presented here are applied to 1D spacecraft-like analysis, establishing a link between non-fluid phenomena and solar wind magnetic discontinuities. Finally, the dimensionality of turbulence is investigated, for the first time, via 6D HVM simulations (3D in both spaces). These preliminary results provide support for several previously reported studies based on 2.5D simulations, confirming several basic conclusions. This connection between kinetic features and turbulence open a new path on the study of processes such as heating, particle acceleration, and temperature-anisotropy, commonly observed in space plasmas.

Intermittency, nonlinear dynamics and dissipation in the solar wind and astrophysical plasmas

An overview is given of important properties of spatial and temporal intermittency, including evidence of its appearance in fluids, magnetofluids and plasmas, and its implications for understanding of heliospheric plasmas. Spatial intermittency is generally associated with formation of sharp gradients and coherent structures. The basic physics of structure generation is ideal, but when dissipation is present it is usually concentrated in regions of strong gradients. This essential feature of spatial intermittency in fluids has been shown recently to carry over to the realm of kinetic plasma, where the dissipation function is not known from first principles. Spatial structures produced in intermittent plasma influence dissipation, heating, and transport and acceleration of charged particles. Temporal intermittency can give rise to very long time correlations or a delayed approach to steady-state conditions, and has been associated with inverse cascade or quasi-inverse cascade systems, with possible implications for heliospheric prediction.

Overview on numerical studies of reconnection and dissipation in the solar wind

In this work, recent advances in numerical studies of local reconnection events in the turbulent plasmas are reviewed. Recently [1], the nonlinear dynamics of magnetic reconnection in turbulence has been investigated through high resolution numerical simulations. Both fluid (MHD and Hall MHD) and kinetic (HybridVlasov) 2D simulations reveal the presence of a large number of X-type neutral points, where magnetic reconnection locally occurs. The associated reconnection rates are distributed over a wide range of values and they depend on the local geometry of the diffusion region. This new approach to the study of magnetic reconnection has broad applications to the turbulent solar wind (SW). Strong magnetic SW discontinuities are in fact strongly related to these intermittent processes of reconnection [2, 3]. Methods employed to identify sets of possible reconnection events along a one-dimensional path through the turbulent field (emulating experimental sampling by a single detector in a highspeed flow) are ...

Small Scale Processes in the Solar Wind

The solar wind provides a fascinating laboratory for the investigation of a wide range of plasma physical nonlinear processes, such as, e.g., turbulence, intermittency, magnetic reconnection and plasma heating. One of the key aspects for a deep understanding of these phenomena is the plasma behaviour at small scales. This chapter is intended as a discussion forum on the role played by small scales in solar wind plasma dynamics and/or evolution. Processes occurring at large scales are anyhow responsible for the generation of small scale kinetic fluctuations and structures that in turn have important feedback on the global system evolution. In particular, we will focus our attention on two topics, namely magnetic reconnection and kinetic effects at short spatial scales.

Emergence of intermittent structures and reconnection in MHD turbulence

In recent analyses of numerical simulation and solar wind dataset, the idea that the magnetic discontinuities may be related to intermittent structures that appear spontaneously in MHD turbulence has been explored in details. These studies are consistent with the hypothesis that discontinuity events founds in the solar wind might be of local origin as well, i.e. a byproduct of the turbulent evolution of magnetic fluctuations. Using simulations of 2D MHD turbulence, we are exploring a possible link between tangential discontinuities and magnetic reconnection. The goal is to develop numerical algorithms that may be useful for solar wind applications.