Evidence for Whistler Waves Propagating Into the Electron Diffusion Region of Collisionless Magnetic ReconnectionShow others and affiliations
2022 (English)In: Geophysical Research Letters, ISSN 0094-8276, E-ISSN 1944-8007, Vol. 49, no 7, article id e2021GL097387Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]
Despite a growing number of observations of whistler waves in/around the reconnection diffusion region, the origin of the whistler waves in the diffusion region and their role in reconnection remain elusive. This paper investigates the whistler-mode waves within an electron-scale reconnecting current sheet observed by the Magnetospheric Multiscale mission on 23 December 2016. These whistlers were observed in both the electron diffusion region (EDR) and the immediate inflow region of the electron-scale magnetic reconnection site. The dispersion relation of these whistlers is measured and compared to predictions from linear theory for the first time in these regions. The comparison shows that the field-aligned drifting electron component critically modifies the dispersion relation of whistlers in the EDR due to the Doppler-shift effects. We demonstrate that these whistlers propagated into the EDR from outside rather than locally excited, however, they did not provide sufficiently large anomalous dissipation in this EDR.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
AMER GEOPHYSICAL UNION American Geophysical Union (AGU), 2022. Vol. 49, no 7, article id e2021GL097387
Keywords [en]
magnetic reconnection, whistler waves, electron diffusion region, anomalous resistivity
National Category
Astronomy, Astrophysics and Cosmology Fusion, Plasma and Space Physics
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-473573DOI: 10.1029/2021GL097387ISI: 000782449400009OAI: oai:DiVA.org:uu-473573DiVA, id: diva2:1654849
2022-04-292022-04-292024-01-15Bibliographically approved