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  4. Multi-species measurements of the firehose and mirror instability thresholds in the solar wind
 
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Multi-species measurements of the firehose and mirror instability thresholds in the solar wind
File(s)
apjl_825_2_L26.pdf (1.48 MB)
Published version
1606.02624v1.pdf (357.17 KB)
Accepted version
OA Location
https://arxiv.org/abs/1606.02624
Author(s)
Chen, CHK
Matteini, L
Schekochihin, AA
Stevens, ML
Salem, CS
more
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
The firehose and mirror instabilities are thought to arise in a variety of space and astrophysical plasmas, constraining the pressure anisotropies and drifts between particle species. The plasma stability depends on all species simultaneously, meaning that a combined analysis is required. Here, we present the first such analysis in the solar wind, using the long-wavelength stability parameters to combine the anisotropies and drifts of all major species (core and beam protons, alphas, and electrons). At the threshold, the firehose parameter was found to be dominated by protons (67%), but also to have significant contributions from electrons (18%) and alphas (15%). Drifts were also found to be important, contributing 57% in the presence of a proton beam. A similar situation was found for the mirror, with contributions of 61%, 28%, and 11% for protons, electrons, and alphas, respectively. The parallel electric field contribution, however, was found to be small at 9%. Overall, the long-wavelength thresholds constrain the data well (${\text{}}\lt 1 \% $ unstable), and the implications of this are discussed.
Date Issued
2016-07-08
Date Acceptance
2016-06-08
Citation
Astrophysical Journal Letters, 2016, 825 (2)
URI
http://hdl.handle.net/10044/1/34532
DOI
https://www.dx.doi.org/10.3847/2041-8205/825/2/L26
ISSN
2041-8213
Publisher
American Astronomical Society
Journal / Book Title
Astrophysical Journal Letters
Volume
825
Issue
2
Copyright Statement
© 2016 The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved. The definitive publisher authenticated version is available online at http://dx.doi.org/10.3847/2041-8205/825/2/L26
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
L26
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