Cosmic-ray parallel and perpendicular transport in turbulent magnetic fields
- Kavli Institute of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Peking University, Beijing 100871 (China)
A correct description of cosmic-ray (CR) diffusion in turbulent plasma is essential for many astrophysical and heliospheric problems. This paper aims to present the physical diffusion behavior of CRs in actual turbulent magnetic fields, a model of which has been numerically tested. We perform test particle simulations in compressible magnetohydrodynamic turbulence. We obtain scattering and spatial diffusion coefficients by tracing particle trajectories. We find no resonance gap for pitch-angle scattering at 90°. Our result confirms the dominance of mirror interaction with compressible modes for most pitch angles, as revealed by the nonlinear theory. For cross-field transport, our results are consistent with normal diffusion predicted earlier for large scales. The diffusion behavior strongly depends on the Alfvénic Mach number and the particle's parallel mean free path. We, for the first time, numerically derive the dependence of M{sub A}{sup 4} for the perpendicular diffusion coefficient with respect to the mean magnetic field. We conclude that CR diffusion coefficients are spatially correlated to the local turbulence properties. On scales smaller than the injection scale, we find that CRs are superdiffusive. We emphasize the importance of our results in a wide range of astrophysical processes, including magnetic reconnection.
- OSTI ID:
- 22348417
- Journal Information:
- Astrophysical Journal, Vol. 779, Issue 2; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0004-637X
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
A GENERALIZED NONLINEAR GUIDING CENTER THEORY FOR THE COLLISIONLESS ANOMALOUS PERPENDICULAR DIFFUSION OF COSMIC RAYS
MAGNETIC VARIANCES AND PITCH-ANGLE SCATTERING TIMES UPSTREAM OF INTERPLANETARY SHOCKS