Journal article
Kinetic Simulations of Magnetized Turbulence in Astrophysical Plasmas
Physical review letters, Vol.100(6), pp.065004-065004
11/27/2007
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.100.065004
PMID: 18352484
Abstract
This letter presents the first ab initio, fully electromagnetic, kinetic simulations of magnetized turbulence in a homogeneous, weakly collisional plasma at the scale of the ion Larmor radius (ion gyroscale). Magnetic and electric-field energy spectra show a break at the ion gyroscale; the spectral slopes are consistent with scaling predictions for critically balanced turbulence of Alfven waves above the ion gyroscale (spectral index -5/3) and of kinetic Alfven waves below the ion gyroscale (spectral indices of -7/3 for
magnetic and -1/3 for electric fluctuations). This behavior is also qualitatively consistent with in situ measurements of turbulence in the solar wind. Our findings support the hypothesis that the frequencies of turbulent fluctuations in the solar wind remain well below the ion cyclotron frequency both above and below the ion gyroscale.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Kinetic Simulations of Magnetized Turbulence in Astrophysical Plasmas
- Creators
- G. G Howes - University of California, BerkeleyW Dorland - University of Maryland, College ParkS. C Cowley - Imperial College LondonG. W Hammett - Princeton Plasma Physics LaboratoryE Quataert - University of California, BerkeleyA. A Schekochihin - Imperial College LondonT Tatsuno - University of Maryland, College Park
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Physical review letters, Vol.100(6), pp.065004-065004
- DOI
- 10.1103/PhysRevLett.100.065004
- PMID
- 18352484
- NLM abbreviation
- Phys Rev Lett
- ISSN
- 0031-9007
- eISSN
- 1079-7114
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 11/27/2007
- Academic Unit
- Physics and Astronomy
- Record Identifier
- 9984199747902771
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