Related papers: Three-dimensional simulations of the orientation a…
We investigate magnetic reconnection in systems simultaneously containing asymmetric (anti-parallel) magnetic fields, asymmetric plasma densities and temperatures, and arbitrary in-plane bulk flow of plasma in the upstream regions. Such…
Magnetic reconnection is a ubiquitous plasma process in which oppositely directed magnetic field lines break and rejoin, resulting in a change of the magnetic field topology. Reconnection generates magnetic islands: regions enclosed by…
In situ spacecraft data on the solar wind show events identified as magnetic reconnection with outflows and apparent "`$X$-lines" $10^{3-4}$ times ion scales. To understand the role of turbulence at these scales, we make a case study of an…
Plasmoid instability accelerates reconnection in collisional plasmas by transforming a laminar reconnection layer into numerous plasmoids connected by secondary current sheets in two dimensions (2D) and by fostering self-generated turbulent…
Simulations have played a critical role in the advancement of our knowledge of magnetic reconnection. However, due to the inherently multiscale nature of reconnection, it is impossible to simulate all physics at all scales. For this reason,…
The spreading of the X-line out of the reconnection plane under a strong guide field is investigated using large-scale three-dimensional (3D) particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations in asymmetric magnetic reconnection. A simulation with a thick,…
We present a novel Hall magnetohydrodynamics (HMHD) numerical simulation of a three-dimensional (3D) magnetic flux rope (MFR) -- generated by magnetic reconnections from an initial 3D bipolar sheared field. Magnetic reconnections during the…
In magnetized astrophysical outflows, the dissipation of field energy into particle energy via magnetic reconnection is often invoked to explain the observed non-thermal signatures. By means of two- and three-dimensional particle-in-cell…
Magnetic reconnection occurs when two plasmas having co-planar but anti-parallel magnetic fields meet. At the contact point, the field is locally annihilated and the magnetic energy can be released into the surrounding plasma. Theory and…
Electron and proton acceleration in three-dimensional electric and magnetic fields is studied through test particle simulations. The fields are obtained by a three-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic simulation of magnetic reconnection in slab…
Evolving magnetic fields are frequently embedded in plasmas that are turbulent. When the primary interest is in effects that are on a large scale compared to that of the turbulence, it is desirable to average over the turbulence to obtain…
Reconnection and turbulence are two of the most commonly observed dynamical processes in plasmas, but their relationship is still not fully understood. Using 2.5D kinetic particle-in-cell simulations of both strong turbulence and…
We investigate the large scale evolution of a relativistic magnetic reconnection in an electron-positron pair plasma by a relativistic two-fluid magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) code. We introduce an inter-species friction force as an effective…
Theoretical arguments and large-scale two-fluid simulations are used to study the spreading of reconnection X-lines localized in the direction of the current as a func- tion of the strength of the out-of-plane (guide) magnetic field. It is…
Magnetic field embedded in a perfectly conducting fluid preserves its topology for all time. Although ionized astrophysical objects, like stars and galactic disks, are almost perfectly conducting, they show indications of changes in…
Fast reconnection operating in magnetically dominated plasmas is often invoked in models for magnetar giant flares, for magnetic dissipation in pulsar winds, or to explain the gamma-ray flares observed in the Crab nebula, hence its…
Three-dimensional (3D) magnetohydrodynamic simulations are carried out to explore magnetic reconnections in the presence of 3D magnetic nulls and quasi-separatrix layers (QSLs). The initial magnetic fields are created by superposing uniform…
Fast reconnection in magnetically dominated plasmas is widely invoked in models of dissipation in pulsar winds, gamma-ray flares in the Crab nebula, and to explain the radio nanoshots of pulsars. When current sheets evolve reaching a…
Magnetic reconnection, a plasma process converting magnetic energy to particle kinetic energy, is often invoked to explain magnetic energy releases powering high-energy flares in astrophysical sources including pulsar wind nebulae and black…
Magnetic field-lines in astrophysical plasmas are expected to be frozen-in at scales larger than the ion gyroradius. The rapid reconnection of magnetic flux structures with dimensions vastly larger than the gyroradius requires a breakdown…