An analytical solution of finite-amplitude solitary kinetic Alfven waves
- Purple Mountain Observatory, Academia Sinica, Nanjing, 210008 (China)
- Department of Plasma Physics, Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm (Sweden)
An analytical solution of finite-amplitude solitary kinetic Alfven waves (SKAWs) in a low-{beta} ({beta}{much_lt}{ital m}{sub {ital e}}/{ital m}{sub {ital i}}{much_lt}1) plasma is presented. This solution has been compared with the solution of the Korteweg--de Vries (KdV) equation in the small-amplitude limit. It is found that the KdV soliton solution is valid only for the maximum relative density perturbation {ital N}{sub {ital m}}{lt}0.1. For the larger {ital N}{sub {ital m}}, the exact analytical solution shows that the SKAWs have a much wider structure and much stronger perturbed fields than the KdV solitons with the same {ital N}{sub {ital m}}. Moreover, the relations between the width and the amplitude of SKAWs are also considerably different from that of the KdV solitons. In addition, the possibility for applying these results to some events observed from the Freja scientific satellite is discussed. (The Freja is a Swedish--German scientific project for the investigation of ionospheric and magnetospheric plasmas, and the Freja satellite was launched on a Long-March II rocket of China on October 6, 1992.) {copyright} {ital 1995} {ital American} {ital Institute} {ital of} {ital Physics}.
- OSTI ID:
- 165827
- Journal Information:
- Physics of Plasmas, Vol. 2, Issue 12; Other Information: PBD: Dec 1995
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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