Related papers: Intermittency in Collisionless Large-Amplitude Tur…
Theoretical approaches to low-frequency magnetized turbulence in collisionless and weakly collisional astrophysical plasmas are reviewed. The proper starting point for an analytical description of these plasmas is kinetic theory, not fluid…
The rich structure that we observe in molecular clouds is due to the interplay between strong magnetic fields and supersonic (turbulent) velocity fluctuations. The velocity fluctuations interact with the magnetic field, causing it too to…
High-amplitude, chaotic/turbulent electromagnetic fluctuations are ubiquitous in high-energy-density laboratory and astrophysical plasmas, where they can be excited by various kinetic-streaming and/or anisotropy-driven instabilities, such…
In weakly collisional astrophysical plasmas, such as the intracluster medium of galaxy clusters, the amplification of cosmic magnetic fields by chaotic fluid motions is hampered by the adiabatic production of magnetic-field-aligned pressure…
We present results from three-dimensional hybrid-kinetic simulations of Alfv\'enic turbulence in a high-beta, collisionless plasma. The key feature of such turbulence is the interplay between local wave--wave interactions between the…
In a magnetized, collisionless plasma, the magnetic moment of the constituent particles is an adiabatic invariant. An increase in the magnetic-field strength in such a plasma thus leads to an increase in the thermal pressure perpendicular…
Transport in collisionless plasmas is usually called anomalous, being due to the interaction between the particles and the self-generated turbulence by their collective interactions. Because of its relevance for astrophysical and space…
Using two-dimensional hybrid-kinetic simulations, we explore the nonlinear "interruption" of standing and traveling shear-Alfv\'en waves in collisionless plasmas. Interruption involves a self-generated pressure anisotropy removing the…
The relationship between a decaying plasma turbulence and proton fire hose instabilities in a slowly expanding plasma is investigated using three-dimensional (3-D) hybrid expanding box simulations. We impose an initial ambient magnetic…
We consider the linear axisymmetric stability of a differentially rotating collisionless plasma in the presence of a weak magnetic field; we restrict our analysis to wavelengths much larger than the proton Larmor radius. This is the kinetic…
The Probability Distribution Function of plasma density fluctuations at the edge of fusion devices is known to be skewed and strongly non-Gaussian. The causes of this peculiar behaviour are, up to now, largely unexplored. On the other hand,…
We use the 3D fully kinetic simulation to study different turbulence modes and turbulence anisotropy of relativistic turbulence in magnetically dominated collisionless plasmas. We extend the method developed by Cho & Lazarian (2002) for…
Using hybrid-kinetic particle-in-cell simulation, we study the evolution of an expanding, collisionless, magnetized plasma in which strong Alfv\'enic turbulence is persistently driven. Temperature anisotropy generated adiabatically by the…
Magnetic nozzles are a key component of electrodeless plasma thrusters, acting as their main acceleration stage. Non-stationary phenomena common to the entire range of $E \times B$ devices, such as oscillations and instabilities, are likely…
Radio-wave scintillation observations reveal a nearly Kolmogorov spectrum of density fluctuations in the ionized interstellar medium. Although this density spectrum is suggestive of turbulence, no theory relevant to its interpretation…
Intermittency in fluid turbulence can be evidentiated through the analysis of Probability Distribution Functions (PDF) of velocity fluctuations, which display a strong non-gaussian behavior at small scales. In this paper we investigate the…
Magnetic reconnection is a fundamental plasma process that converts magnetic energy into bulk flow energy, thermal energy, and nonthermal particle acceleration. Despite its importance, the statistical properties of the turbulent…
We investigate the linear tearing instability in weakly collisional plasmas using a non-ideal gyrotropic-MHD framework, uncovering a previously unknown scaling relation for the instability growth rate in high-$\beta$ environments. Even…
Spectral properties of a fully compressible solar wind Hall Magnetohydrodynamic plasma are investigated by means of time dependent three dimensional Hall MHD simulations. Our simulations, in agreement with spacecraft data, identify a…
The selfgenerated wave fluctuations are particularly interesting in the solar wind and magnetospheric plasmas, where Coulomb collisions are rare and cannot explain the observed states of quasi-equilibrium. Linear theory predicts that the…