Generation of electrostatic noise in the plasma sheet boundary layer

Technical Report · Mon Sep 01 04:00:00 EDT 1986

OSTI ID:6318363

Dusenberry, P B; Lyons, L R

The one and two ion beam instability is considered as a possible explanation for the observations of broad band electrostatic noise in the plasma sheet region of the geomagnetic tail. When only hot streaming plasma sheet boundary layer ions are present, no broad band waves are excited. Cold, streaming ionospheric ions can generate electrostatic broad band waves propagating in the slow beam acoustic mode, but the growth rates of the waves are significantly enhanced when hot boundary layer ions are present. (Both the slow and fast beam acoustic modes can be excited, depending on the relative ion drift.) This model predicts that the wave intensity of the broad band noise should peak in the plasma sheet boundary layer. Observations of less intense electrostatic waves in the lobes and plasma sheet are likely a result of the absence of hot ion beams or large ion temperatures, respectively, which result in smaller growth rates. The ion beam instability may play an important role in the formation of the central plasma sheet.

• Research Organization: Colorado Univ., Boulder, (USA). Cooperative Inst. for Research in Environmental Sciences
• OSTI ID: 6318363
• Report Number(s): ATR-6(8433)-4
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

640201* -- Atmospheric Physics-- Auroral
Ionospheric
& Magetospheric Phenomena
71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
BEAMS
DATA
EARTH ATMOSPHERE
EARTH MAGNETOSPHERE
INFORMATION
ION BEAMS
MAGNETOTAIL
MATHEMATICAL MODELS
NOISE
NUMERICAL DATA
PLASMA SHEET
PLASMA WAVES
THEORETICAL DATA
WAVE PROPAGATION