Effects of Guide Field and Background Density and Temperature on Energy Conversion at Magnetic Reconnection Front

Abstract

AbstractMagnetic reconnection is a fundamental energy converting process changing the topology of the magnetic field in space. We investigate how the guide field and the background plasma density and temperature influence the energy converting process during magnetic reconnection using a two‐dimensional particle‐in‐cell simulation code. It is shown that the guide field reduces both the reconnection rate and the energy conversion rate. Although the downstream Poynting flux from the reconnection site is enhanced during guide field magnetic reconnection, it does not participate in energy conversion as the inflow and outflow of Poynting flux from the left and right boundaries of the reconnection front cancel each other out. The major input of the Poynting flux participating in energy conversion comes from the upper and lower boundaries of the reconnection front. An electrostatic perturbating structure arises in cases with a strong guide field. Apart from the reconnection rate and the energy conversion rate, the energy outflow is altered by changing background plasma density and temperature. Our research shows that the energy input at a well‐developed reconnection front in the case of the guide field does not come from the reconnection site, which implies the reconnection front can be an effective energy converter in the magnetosphere independent of the reconnection site once formed from the transient magnetic reconnection. These simulation results show that the guide field and background density and temperature quantitatively alter the energy conversion at the magnetic reconnection front, but the energy conversion pattern remains unchanged.