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Fluid vs. kinetic magnetic reconnection with strong guide fields.
- Source :
-
Physics of Plasmas . 2015, Vol. 22 Issue 10, p1-15. 15p. 1 Color Photograph, 19 Graphs. - Publication Year :
- 2015
-
Abstract
- The fast rates of magnetic reconnection found in both nature and experiments are important to understand theoretically. Recently, it was demonstrated that two-fluid magnetic reconnection remains fast in the strong guide field regime, regardless of the presence of fast-dispersive waves. This conclusion is in agreement with recent results from kinetic simulations, and is in contradiction to the findings in an earlier two-fluid study, where it was suggested that fast-dispersive waves are necessary for fast reconnection. In this paper, we give a more detailed derivation of the analytic model presented in a recent letter and present additional simulation results to support the conclusions that the magnetic reconnection rate in this regime is independent of both collisional dissipation and system-size. In particular, we present a detailed comparison between fluid and kinetic simulations, finding good agreement in both the reconnection rate and overall length of the current layer. Finally, we revisit the earlier two-fluid study, which arrived at different conclusions, and suggest an alternative interpretation for the numerical results presented therein. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 1070664X
- Volume :
- 22
- Issue :
- 10
- Database :
- Academic Search Index
- Journal :
- Physics of Plasmas
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 110719768
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4932330