Non-thermal Ion Population Research Articles

Dust-acoustic solitary and cnoidal waves in a dense magnetized dusty plasma with temperature degenerate trapped electrons and nonthermal ions

A rigorous theoretical study has been made on obliquely propagating dust-acoustic solitary waves (OPDASWs) and cnoidal waves in a dense degenerate dusty plasma medium in the presence of temperature degenerate trapped electrons and κ−nonthermal ion population. A reductive perturbation technique has been adopted to obtain the Zakharov-Kuznetsov (ZK) equation and the modified ZK (mZK) equation. The solitary wave solutions of ZK and mZK equations are obtained to analyse the characteristics of solitary waves in such a plasma. The Jacobi (cn) elliptic periodic wave solution for mZK is also derived to analyse the nature of dust acoustic travelling wave. The different plasma parameters (e.g., electron-to-dust number density via δ, ions nonthermality via κ, temperature effect of degenerate trapped electrons via T, etc.) are seen to have significant inluence on the propagation nature of OPDASWs. The applications of results may be useful to explain/understand the nature of solitary waves in different ultra-dense astrophysical environments (such as neutron stars, white dwarfs etc. [, ]) and also in experiments involve the interaction of laser and solid density plasma and inertial confinement fusion, [, ] in which the relativistic effects play major role.

Asymmetries and Broadenings of Spectral Lines in Strongly Charged Iron Produced during Solar Flares

Abstract Spatially resolved spectroscopic observations show wing enhancements and broadening in extreme ultraviolet emission lines, particularly in hot iron lines. Various explanations ranging from plasma turbulence and magnetic perturbations, to nonthermal ion populations and multiple flows in unresolved structures have been proposed. In this work, we revisit the role of single loop plasma dynamics in spectral line shape by reproducing the wing enhancements of Fe xxiii and xxiv observed during a C-class solar flare using a single loop hydrodynamic model. We also run simulations with different loop lengths and the same beam parameters to investigate the role of loop length in line broadening and asymmetry. We find that the single loop model successfully reproduces line asymmetries and the loop length plays an important role in explaining some of the key observations such as the positive correlation between the Doppler shifts and line width, and broad but symmetric hot Fe lines.

Analysis of radiative gravitational modes in magnetized dusty plasma with non-thermal ion distribution

The characteristics of radiative gravitational modes in non-thermal magnetized dusty plasma with charge fluctuation and the polarization force of dust particles are investigated. The electron species are assumed to be radiative and the ions are assumed to be non-thermal. A normal mode analysis is applied to derive the general dispersion relation for radiative magnetized self-gravitating dusty plasma. Modified radiative condensation and self-gravitational instability criteria for both perpendicular and parallel modes of propagation are obtained. Analytically, it is found that the presence of a non-thermal ion population significantly modified the usual radiative condensation instability criterion, and damped the growth rate of the radiative mode. The obtained analytical results are further discussed in the numerical result section. We investigate the fact that the non-thermal ion population acts as a stabilizing source for radiative condensation instability in magnetized self-gravitating dusty plasma fluid, including the dust polarization force and charge fluctuation. The thermal conductivity with non-thermal ion distribution quickly moves the system towards stability. The implications of the results in the region of the interstellar medium (ISM) are discussed.

Laboratory investigation of particle acceleration and magnetic field compression in collisionless colliding fast plasma flows

In many natural phenomena in space (cosmic-rays, fast winds), non-thermal ion populations are produced, with wave-particle interactions in self-induced electromagnetic turbulence being suspected to be mediators. However, the processes by which the electromagnetic energy is bestowed upon the particles is debated, and in some cases requires field compression. Here we show that laboratory experiments using high-power lasers and external strong magnetic field can be used to infer magnetic field compression in the interpenetration of two collisionless, high-velocity (0.01–0.1c) quasi-neutral plasma flows. This is evidenced through observed plasma stagnation at the flows collision point, which Particle-in-Cell (PIC) simulations suggest to be the signature of magnetic field compression into a thin layer, followed by its dislocation into magnetic vortices. Acceleration of protons from the plasma collision is observed as well. As a possible scenario, with 1D and 2D PIC simulations we consider a compression of the vortices against dense plasma remnants.

Electron and Ion Energization in Relativistic Plasma Turbulence.

Electron and ion energization (i.e., heating and nonthermal acceleration) is a fundamental, but poorly understood, outcome of plasma turbulence. In this work, we present new results on this topic from particle-in-cell simulations of driven turbulence in collisionless, relativistic electron-ion plasma. We focus on temperatures such that ions (protons) are subrelativistic and electrons are ultrarelativistic, a regime relevant for high-energy astrophysical systems such as hot accretion flows onto black holes. We find that ions tend to be preferentially heated, gaining up to an order of magnitude more energy than electrons, and propose a simple empirical formula to describe the electron-ion energy partition as a function of the ratio of electron-to-ion gyroradii (which in turn is a function of initial temperatures and plasma beta). We also find that while efficient nonthermal particle acceleration occurs for both species in the ultrarelativistic regime, nonthermal electron populations are diminished with decreasing temperature whereas nonthermal ion populations are essentially unchanged. These results have implications for modeling and interpreting observations of hot accretion flows.

Shear-flow driven dissipative instability and investigation of nonlinear drift-vortex modes in dusty plasmas with non-thermal ion population

The shear flow in dust dynamics driven waves in combination with the dust-neutral drag is studied in a plasma comprising of ions, electrons, and dust. Non-thermal population of ions is considered, which has been observed by many satellite missions. It is found that the dissipative instability produced by dust sheared flow and dust-neutral drag gets modified by the presence of nonthermal ions. It is found that the dissipative instability enhances for the Cairns distribution, whereas the kappa distribution arrests the growth of this instability. In the nonlinear regime, the formation of vortices in the system is studied. It is found that the nonthermal population of ions significantly alters these structures in comparison with their Maxwellian counterpart. The results obtained in this paper may have relevance in the planetary magnetospheres where the dust particles are present and non-Maxwellian distribution of particles have been observed by Freja and Viking satellites.

Non-Gaussian Velocity Distributions in Solar Flares from Extreme Ultraviolet Lines: A Possible Diagnostic of Ion Acceleration

Abstract In a solar flare, a large fraction of the magnetic energy released is converted rapidly to the kinetic energy of non-thermal particles and bulk plasma motion. This will likely result in non-equilibrium particle distributions and turbulent plasma conditions. We investigate this by analyzing the profiles of high temperature extreme ultraviolet emission lines from a major flare (SOL2014-03-29T17:44) observed by the EUV Imaging Spectrometer (EIS) on Hinode. We find that in many locations the line profiles are non-Gaussian, consistent with a kappa distribution of emitting ions with properties that vary in space and time. At the flare footpoints, close to sites of hard X-ray emission from non-thermal electrons, the κ index for the Fe xvi 262.976 Å line at 3 MK takes values of 3–5. In the corona, close to a low-energy HXR source, the Fe xxiii 263.760 Å line at 15 MK shows κ values of typically 4–7. The observed trends in the κ parameter show that we are most likely detecting the properties of the ion population rather than any instrumental effects. We calculate that a non-thermal ion population could exist if locally accelerated on timescales ≤0.1 s. However, observations of net redshifts in the lines also imply the presence of plasma downflows, which could lead to bulk turbulence, with increased non-Gaussianity in cooler regions. Both interpretations have important implications for theories of solar flare particle acceleration.

Low frequency modes and instability analysis in non-thermal dusty magnetoplasma considering dust charge fluctuation and polarization force

The effect of non-thermal ion population on self-gravitational instability of magnetized dusty plasma considering electrons are in Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution has been investigated. The dust dynamics is described including polarization force, thermal velocity, and charge fluctuation dust. The modified general dispersion relation has been derived including non-thermal ion population, polarization force, and dust charge fluctuation for self-gravitating dusty plasma system, using the normal mode analysis method. The obtained general dispersion relation is discussed in parallel and perpendicular modes of propagation. The population of non-thermal ion, polarization force and dust charge fluctuation affect the self-gravitational instability criteria in both the modes of propagation while the magnetic field affects the instability criterion only in perpendicular mode of propagation. The domains of instability has been discussed analytically to signify the importance of considered parameters. The stability of the self-gravitating dusty plasma system has been analyzed using Routh-Hurwitz stability criterion. Numerical calculations have been performed to analyze the effects of non-thermal ion population, polarization force, and dust charge fluctuation on the growth rate of self-gravitational instability. The results of the present work can be useful in self-gravitating dusty plasma found in space and the interstellar medium such as the interstellar molecular clouds where non-thermally distributed ions are the species of the plasma matter.

First evidence of non-Gaussian solar flare EUV spectral line profiles and accelerated non-thermal ion motion

The properties of solar flare plasma can be determined from the observation of optically thin lines. The emitting ion distribution determines the shape of the line, with an isothermal Maxwellian ion distribution producing a Gaussian profile. Non-Gaussian lines may indicate more complex ion distributions. We investigate the possibility of determining flare-accelerated non-thermal ion or plasma velocity distributions. We study EUV spectral lines during a flare SOL2013-05-15T01:45 using the Hinode EUV Imaging Spectrometer (EIS). The flare is located close to the eastern solar limb with an extended loop structure, allowing the different flare features: ribbons, hard X-ray (HXR) footpoints and the loop-top source to be clearly observed in UV, EUV and X-rays. EUV line spectroscopy is performed in seven different regions. We study the line profiles of isolated and unblended Fe XVI lines (262.976 A) formed at temperatures of 2-4 MK. Fe XVI line profiles at one time close to the peak soft X-ray emission and free of directed mass motions are examined using: 1. a higher moments analysis, 2. Gaussian fitting, and 3. by fitting a kappa distribution profile convolved with a Gaussian to account for the EIS instrumental profile. Fe XVI line profiles in the loop-top, HXR footpoint and ribbon regions can be confidently fitted with a kappa line profile, giving low, non-thermal kappa values between 2-3.3. A higher moments analysis also finds that many of the line kurtosis values are higher than the Gaussian value of 3, even with the presence of a broad Gaussian instrumental profile. A flare-accelerated non-thermal ion population could account for both the observed non-Gaussian line profiles, and for the Fe XVI excess broadening found from Gaussian fitting, if the emitting ions are interacting with a thermalised 4 MK electron population, and the instrumental profile is well-approximated by a Gaussian.

Effects of non-Maxwellian species on ion cyclotron waves propagation and absorption in magnetically confined plasmas

Magnetically confined plasmas can contain significant concentrations of nonthermal particles, arising from neutral beam injection, fusion reactions, shock heating, or wave-driven acceleration of resonant plasma species. The associated distribution functions can depart significantly from Maxwellians, which may impact the propagation and absorption of radio frequency waves. The potential effect of these particles has been investigated using a full-wave code that has been extended to handle gyrotropic, but otherwise arbitrary distribution functions. This code has been used to numerically simulate ion cyclotron resonance heating (ICRH) in magnetic fusion plasmas in which coresonant neutral beam injection (NBI) heating may also be applied. The presence of nonthermal ion populations generated by the NBI can alter the ICRH characteristics. Two situations involving ion cyclotron range of frequency waves are presented: fast wave to ion Bernstein wave mode conversion and high harmonic fast wave electron heating. In both cases, the adequacy of an equivalent Maxwellian-based description is discussed. Results indicate that the absorption profiles are more strongly affected than the wave fields by the presence of nonthermal species.