Related papers: Large-Scale Parallel Electric Fields and Return Cu…
We present two-dimensional kinetic simulations, with a broad range of initial guide fields, that isolate the role of parallel electric fields ($E_\parallel$) in energetic electron production during collisionless magnetic reconnection. In…
The mechanisms controlling the relative heating and energization of electrons and protons during magnetic reconnection are explored. Simulations are carried out with the kglobal model, which produces bulk heating and the extended powerlaw…
A set of equations are developed that extend the macroscale magnetic reconnection simulation model kglobal to include particle ions. The extension from earlier versions of kglobal, which included only particle electrons, requires the…
The factors that control the maximum energy attained by protons and electrons during magnetic reconnection are investigated analytically and using large-scale simulations with the \textit{kglobal} model. Previous work revealed that a strong…
A new computational model is presented suitable for exploring the self-consistent production of energetic electrons during magnetic reconnection in macroscale systems. The equations are based on the recent discovery that parallel electric…
The results of simulations of magnetic reconnection accompanied by electron and proton heating and energization in a macroscale system are presented. Both species form extended powerlaw distributions that extend nearly three decades in…
The first self-consistent simulations of electron acceleration during magnetic reconnection in a macroscale system are presented. Consistent with solar flare observations the spectra of energetic electrons take the form of power-laws that…
Using a kinetic simulation of magnetic reconnection it was recently shown that magnetic-field-aligned electric fields (E||) can be present over large spatial scales in reconnection exhausts. The largest values of E|| are observed within…
The heating of electrons in collisionless magnetic reconnection is explored in particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations with non-zero guide fields so that electrons remain magnetized. In this regime electric fields parallel to B accelerate…
Superhalo electrons appear to be continuously present in the interplanetary medium, even at very quiet times, with a power-law spectrum at energies above $\sim$2 keV. Here we numerically investigate the generation of superhalo electrons by…
The physical processes that control the partition of released magnetic energy between electrons and ions during reconnection is explored through particle-in-cell simulations and analytical techniques. We demonstrate that the development of…
Kinetic simulations of 3D collisionless magnetic reconnection with a guide field show a dramatic enhancement of energetic electron production when compared with 2D systems. In the 2D systems, electrons are trapped in magnetic islands that…
Electron energization by magnetic reconnection has historically been studied in the Lagrangian guiding-center framework. Insights from such studies include that Fermi acceleration in magnetic islands can accelerate electrons to high…
Magnetic reconnection is a ubiquitous astrophysical process that rapidly converts magnetic energy into some combination of plasma flow energy, thermal energy, and non-thermal energetic particles, including energetic electrons. Various…
Magnetic reconnection is an important driver of energetic particles in many astrophysical phenomena. Using kinetic particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations, we explore the impact of three-dimensional reconnection dynamics on the efficiency of…
Earth's magnetotail is an excellent laboratory to study the interplay of reconnection and turbulence in determining electron energization. The process of formation of a power law tail during turbulent reconnection is a documented fact still…
To understand the essential physics needed to reproduce magnetic reconnection events in 2.5-D particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations, we revisit the Geospace Environmental Modeling (GEM) setup. We set up a 2-D Harris current sheet (that also…
During the recovery phase of a magnetic storm, fluxes of relativistic ($>1$ MeV) electrons in the inner magnetosphere ($3\le L \le 6$) increase to beyond pre-storm levels, reaching a peak about 4 days after the initiation of the storm. In…
High-harmonic generation (HHG) in crystalline solids have been examined so far on the basis of one-body energy-band structures arising from electron itineracy in a periodic potential. Here, we show emergence of HHG signals which are…
We investigate electron heating by magnetic-field-aligned electric fields ($E_\parallel$) during anti-parallel magnetic reconnection in the Earth's magnetotail. Using a statistical sample of 140 reconnection outflows, we infer the…