Kinetic turbulence drives MHD equilibrium change via 3D reconnection

Kinetic turbulence drives MHD equilibrium change via 3D reconnection | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Kinetic turbulence drives MHD equilibrium change via 3D reconnection Jong Yoon Park, Young Dae Yoon, Yong-Seok Hwang This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-6772932/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Cross-scale coupling from magnetohydrodynamics(MHD) to non-MHD scales is an important key in interpreting observations of explosive events in nature like solar flares and geomagnetic storms. Experiments and observations also link it to the emergence of energetic particles and X-rays. However, how such multi-scale physics affects the abrupt onset of reconnection remains an open, unresolved question. Here, we report observations from laboratory experiments involving two flux ropes with electron beams that induce magnetic turbulence and then abruptly merge into a single structure, altering the magnetic topology in the MHD regime. Two separate electron beams are launched along magnetic field lines and form individual flux ropes with a drift velocity higher than the ambient Alfvén velocity, effectively driving magnetic turbulence via beam-driven instabilities, inferred from the increased level of turbulent power spectrum. Experimental observations, including the appearance of energetic particles, increased ion temperature, and changes in the characteristics of flux ropes, suggest that beam-driven turbulence drives 3D reconnection. 3D particle-in-cell simulations are performed which successfully reproduce the key aspects of the experiment. These results directly illustrate how non-MHD kinetic processes progress through multiple scales to induce global MHD changes. Plasma and Fluids Full Text Additional Declarations The authors declare no competing interests. Supplementary Files Supplementary1.mp4 Movie of Figs. 4a and 4b. Supplementary2.mp4 Movie of Figs. 4c and 4d Supplementary3.mp4 Movie of Figs. 4e-5h Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. 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