Orientation of x-lines in asymmetric magnetic reconnection - mass ratio dependency

Abstract

Using fully kinetic simulations, we study the x-line orientation of magnetic reconnection in an asymmetric configuration. A spatially localized perturbation is employed to induce a single x-line, that has sufficient freedom to choose its orientation in three-dimensional systems. The effect of ion to electron mass ratio is investigated, and the x-line appears to bisect the magnetic shear angle across the current sheet in the large mass ratio limit. The orientation can generally be deduced by scanning through corresponding 2D simulations to find the reconnection plane that maximizes the peak reconnection electric field. The deviation from the bisection angle in the lower mass ratio limit can be explained by the physics of tearing instability.

10 pages, 8 figures

References in corpus (2)

• Comparative Analysis of Dayside Reconnection Models in Global Magnetosphere Simulations
• Development of a Turbulent Outflow During Electron-Positron Magnetic Reconnection

Cited by in corpus (7)

• Drift Turbulence, Particle Transport, and Anomalous Dissipation at the Reconnecting Magnetopause
• Orientation and stability of asymmetric magnetic reconnection x-line
• On the collisionless asymmetric magnetic reconnection rate
• Exact Vlasov-Maxwell equilibria for asymmetric current sheets
• Three-Dimensional X-line Spreading in Asymmetric Magnetic Reconnection
• Turbulence and Transport During Guide-Field Reconnection at the Magnetopause
• Multi-scale coupling during magnetopause reconnection: the interface between the electron and ion diffusion regions