Experimental verification of the role of electron pressure in fast magnetic reconnection with a guide field

Fox, W.; Sciortino, F.; v. Stechow, A.; Jara-Almonte, J.; Yoo, J.; Ji, H.; Yamada, M.

doi:10.1103/PhysRevLett.118.125002

Title: Experimental verification of the role of electron pressure in fast magnetic reconnection with a guide field

Journal Article · Tue Mar 21 00:00:00 EDT 2017 · Physical Review Letters

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.118.125002· OSTI ID:1371564

Fox, W. ^[1]; Sciortino, F. ^[2]; v. Stechow, A. ^[3]; Jara-Almonte, J. ^[1]; Yoo, J. ^[1]; Ji, H. ^[1]; Yamada, M. ^[1]

Princeton Plasma Physics Lab. (PPPL), Princeton, NJ (United States)
Imperial College, London (United Kingdom); Massachusetts Inst. of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, MA (United States)
Max-Planck-Institut fur Plasmaphysik, Greifswald (Germany)

We report detailed laboratory observations of the structure of a reconnection current sheet in a two-fluid plasma regime with a guide magnetic field. We observe and quantitatively analyze the quadrupolar electron pressure variation in the ion-diffusion region, as originally predicted by extended magnetohydrodynamics simulations. The projection of the electron pressure gradient parallel to the magnetic field contributes significantly to balancing the parallel electric field, and the resulting cross-field electron jets in the reconnection layer are diamagnetic in origin. Furthermore, these results demonstrate how parallel and perpendicular force balance are coupled in guide field reconnection and confirm basic theoretical models of the importance of electron pressure gradients for obtaining fast magnetic reconnection.

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Research Organization:: Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL), Princeton, NJ (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE

Grant/Contract Number:: AC02-04CH11466; NNH15AB29I; NNH14AX631; 633053; AC0204CH11466

OSTI ID:: 1371564

Alternate ID(s):: OSTI ID: 1347821

Report Number(s):: PPPL-5370; PRLTAO; TRN: US1702765

Journal Information:: Physical Review Letters, Vol. 118, Issue 12; ISSN 0031-9007

Publisher:: American Physical Society (APS)Copyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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Cited by: 27 works

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Electromagnetic fluctuations during guide field reconnection in a laboratory plasma Stechow, A. v.; Fox, W.; Jara-Almonte, J. Physics of Plasmas, Vol. 25, Issue 5 https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5025827	journal	May 2018
Energy transfer and electron energization in collisionless magnetic reconnection for different guide-field intensities Pucci, F.; Usami, S.; Ji, H. Physics of Plasmas, Vol. 25, Issue 12 https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5050992	journal	December 2018
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