Self-consistent kinetic model of nested electron- and ion-scale magnetic cavities in space plasmas

Jing-Huan Li, Fan Yang, Xu-Zhi Zhou (), Qiu-Gang Zong (), Anton V. Artemyev, Robert Rankin, Quanqi Shi, Shutao Yao, Han Liu, Jiansen He, Zuyin Pu, Chijie Xiao, Ji Liu, Craig Pollock, Guan Le and James L. Burch
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Jing-Huan Li: Peking University
Fan Yang: Peking University
Xu-Zhi Zhou: Peking University
Qiu-Gang Zong: Peking University
Anton V. Artemyev: University of California
Robert Rankin: University of Alberta
Quanqi Shi: Shandong University
Shutao Yao: Shandong University
Han Liu: Peking University
Jiansen He: Peking University
Zuyin Pu: Peking University
Chijie Xiao: Peking University
Ji Liu: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Craig Pollock: Denali Scientific
Guan Le: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
James L. Burch: Southwest Research Institute

Nature Communications, 2020, vol. 11, issue 1, 1-10

Abstract: Abstract NASA’s Magnetospheric Multi-Scale (MMS) mission is designed to explore the proton- and electron-gyroscale kinetics of plasma turbulence where the bulk of particle acceleration and heating takes place. Understanding the nature of cross-scale structures ubiquitous as magnetic cavities is important to assess the energy partition, cascade and conversion in the plasma universe. Here, we present theoretical insight into magnetic cavities by deriving a self-consistent, kinetic theory of these coherent structures. By taking advantage of the multipoint measurements from the MMS constellation, we demonstrate that our kinetic model can utilize magnetic cavity observations by one MMS spacecraft to predict measurements from a second/third spacecraft. The methodology of “observe and predict” validates the theory we have derived, and confirms that nested magnetic cavities are self-organized plasma structures supported by trapped proton and electron populations in analogous to the classical theta-pinches in laboratory plasmas.

Date: 2020
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-19442-0

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