Collisionless tearing instability of a bi-Maxwellian neutral sheet with exact particle orbits. Interim report
Abstract
The tearing instability of a neutral sheet may be important to reconnection in the magnetosphere and elsewhere. The use of a bi-Maxwellian Harris equilibrium is broadly applicable to the physical environment and allows a continuous variation from isotropic situations. The integro-differential equation describing the linear tearing instability in the bi-Maxwellian neutral sheet is solved without approximating the particle orbits. Results of this calculation are presented. Comparison between the exact solution and the 3-region approximation motivates the piecewise-straight-line approximation, a simplification which allows faster solution of the integro-differential equation, yet retains the important features of the exact solution.
- Authors:
- Publication Date:
- Research Org.:
- Naval Research Lab., Washington, DC (USA)
- OSTI Identifier:
- 5840977
- Report Number(s):
- AD-A-207310/4/XAB; NRL-MR-6405
- Resource Type:
- Technical Report
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
- Subject:
- 70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY; 71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSICS; COLLISIONLESS PLASMA; PLASMA SHEET; EARTH MAGNETOSPHERE; TEARING INSTABILITY; ANISOTROPY; DIFFERENTIAL EQUATIONS; INTEGRAL EQUATIONS; MAGNETIC RECONNECTION; NEUTRAL PARTICLES; ORBITS; PROGRESS REPORT; STABILITY; VARIATIONS; DOCUMENT TYPES; EARTH ATMOSPHERE; EQUATIONS; INSTABILITY; PARTICLES; PLASMA; PLASMA INSTABILITY; PLASMA MACROINSTABILITIES; 700107* - Fusion Energy- Plasma Research- Instabilities; 640201 - Atmospheric Physics- Auroral, Ionospheric, & Magetospheric Phenomena
Citation Formats
Burkhart, G R, and Chen, J. Collisionless tearing instability of a bi-Maxwellian neutral sheet with exact particle orbits. Interim report. United States: N. p., 1989.
Web.
Burkhart, G R, & Chen, J. Collisionless tearing instability of a bi-Maxwellian neutral sheet with exact particle orbits. Interim report. United States.
Burkhart, G R, and Chen, J. 1989.
"Collisionless tearing instability of a bi-Maxwellian neutral sheet with exact particle orbits. Interim report". United States.
@article{osti_5840977,
title = {Collisionless tearing instability of a bi-Maxwellian neutral sheet with exact particle orbits. Interim report},
author = {Burkhart, G R and Chen, J},
abstractNote = {The tearing instability of a neutral sheet may be important to reconnection in the magnetosphere and elsewhere. The use of a bi-Maxwellian Harris equilibrium is broadly applicable to the physical environment and allows a continuous variation from isotropic situations. The integro-differential equation describing the linear tearing instability in the bi-Maxwellian neutral sheet is solved without approximating the particle orbits. Results of this calculation are presented. Comparison between the exact solution and the 3-region approximation motivates the piecewise-straight-line approximation, a simplification which allows faster solution of the integro-differential equation, yet retains the important features of the exact solution.},
doi = {},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/5840977},
journal = {},
number = ,
volume = ,
place = {United States},
year = {Mon Mar 27 00:00:00 EST 1989},
month = {Mon Mar 27 00:00:00 EST 1989}
}