Coronal Heating Topology: the Interplay of Current Sheets and Magnetic Field Lines

Abstract

The magnetic topology and field line random walk properties of a nanoflare-heated and magnetically confined corona are investigated in the reduced magnetohydrodynamic regime. Field lines originating from current sheets form coherent structures, called Current Sheet Connected (CSC) regions, extended around them. CSC field line random walk is strongly anisotropic, with preferential diffusion along the current sheets' in-plane length. CSC field line random walk properties remain similar to those of the entire ensemble but exhibit enhanced mean square displacements and separations due to the stronger magnetic field intensities in CSC regions. The implications for particle acceleration and heat transport in the solar corona and wind, and for solar moss formation are discussed.

11 pages, 4 Figures, ApJ (in press)

References in corpus (8)

• Instability of current sheets and formation of plasmoid chains
• Self-Feeding Turbulent Magnetic Reconnection on Macroscopic Scales
• Coronal Heating, Weak MHD Turbulence and Scaling Laws
• Observations of Active Region Loops with the EUV Imaging Spectrometer on Hinode
• The tearing mode instability of thin current sheets: the transition to fast reconnection in the presence of viscosity
• Turbulent Coronal Heating Mechanisms: Coupling of Dynamics and Thermodynamics
• Explosive Particle Dispersion in Plasma Turbulence
• Magnetohydrodynamic Turbulent Cascade of Coronal Loop Magnetic Fields

Cited by in corpus (6)

• A solar coronal loop in a box: Energy generation and heating
• Energetics and 3-D Structure of Elementary Events in Solar Coronal Heating
• On the Impulsive Heating of Quiet Solar Corona
• Formation and Evolution of Coherent Structures in 3D Strongly Turbulent Magnetized Plasmas
• Nanoflare Diagnostics from Magnetohydrodynamic Heating Profiles
• Current sheets, plasmoids and flux ropes in the heliosphere. Part II: Theoretical aspects