Abstract
The two‐dimensional (2‐D) structure of switch‐off slow magnetosonic shocks is investigated using an electromagnetic hybrid (fluid electrons, kinetic ions) code. It is shown that the basic physical processes occurring at 1‐D slow shocks are also operative in 2‐D. Specifically, the interaction between the upstream ions and those streaming away from the shock results in the excitation of Alfvén/ion‐cyclotron (AIC) waves. Depending on the plasma parameters, these waves may either stay in the upstream or convect back into the shock resulting in a non‐steady shock behavior which prevents the formation of a trailing wave train. Despite this similarity, some slow shocks which are steady in 1‐D are found to be non‐steady in 2‐D. Fourier analysis of the waves downstream of non‐steady shocks identifies them as AIC, demonstrating that the waves remain on the same branch as they convect from upstream into the downstream region.
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