Low frequency waves in dual temperature plasmas

Project

In magnetospheric conditions, electromagnetic ion cyclotron waves can be generated by temperature anisotropies. Those waves are left hand polarized and we mostly observe them in parallel propagation in regards to the magnetic field. A mixed medium, incorporating heavier ions, can induce oblique propagation at the cost of a strong dampening. In order to best represent this behavior, we here study a MHD model including different fluid temeperatures and compare it to an event exhibiting strong low frequency waves.

Results

Dispersion surfaces, colour coded by density fluctuation amplitude.