The nature of solar wind turbulence in the dissipation range at scales much smaller than the large magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) scales remains under debate. Here, a two-dimensional model based on the hybrid code abbreviated as A.I.K.E.F. is presented, which treats massive ions as particles obeying the kinetic Vlasov equation and massless electrons as a neutralizing fluid. Up to a certain wavenumber in the MHD regime, the numerical system is initialized by assuming a superposition of isotropic Alfvén waves with amplitudes that follow the empirically confirmed spectral law of Kolmogorov. Then, turbulence develops and energy cascades into the dispersive spectral range, where also dissipative effects occur. Under typical solar wind conditions, weak turbulence develops as a superposition of normal modes in the kinetic regime. Spectral analysis in the direction parallel to the background magnetic field reveals a cascade of left-handed Alfvén/ion-cyclotron waves up to wave vectors where their resonant absorption sets in, as well as a continuing cascade of right-handed fast-mode and whistler waves. Perpendicular to the background field, a broad turbulent spectrum is found to be built up of fluctuations having a strong compressive component. Ion-Bernstein waves seem to be possible normal modes in this propagation direction for lower driving amplitudes. Also, signatures of short-scale pressure-balanced structures (very oblique slow-mode waves) are found.

1.
C.-Y.
Tu
and
E.
Marsch
,
Space Sci. Rev.
73
,
1
(
1995
).
2.
T. S.
Horbury
,
M. A.
Forman
, and
S.
Oughton
,
Plasma Phys. Controlled. Fusion
47
,
B703
(
2005
).
3.
R.
Bruno
and
V.
Carbone
,
Living Rev. Sol. Phys.
2
,
4
(
2005
) (http://www.livingreviews.org/lrsp-2005-4 (cited on September 23, 2011)).
4.
D.
Montgomery
and
L.
Turner
,
Phys. Fluids
24
,
825
(
1981
).
5.
J. W.
Bieber
,
W.
Wanner
, and
W. H.
Matthaeus
,
J. Geophys. Res.
101
,
2511
, doi: (
1996
).
6.
S.
Oughton
,
W. H.
Matthaeus
, and
S.
Ghosh
,
Phys. Plasmas
5
,
4235
(
1998
).
7.
G. G.
Howes
,
Phys. Plasmas
15
,
055904
(
2008
), arXiv:astro-ph/:0711.4358.
8.
A. A.
Schekochihin
,
S. C.
Cowley
,
W.
Dorland
,
G. W.
Hammett
,
G. G.
Howes
,
G. G.
Plunk
,
E.
Quataert
, and
T.
Tatsuno
,
Plasma Phys. Controlled Fusion
50
,
124024
(
2008
), arXiv:astro-ph/:0806.1069.
9.
J. V.
Shebalin
,
W. H.
Matthaeus
, and
D.
Montgomery
,
J. Plasma Phys.
29
,
525
(
1983
).
10.
S.
Oughton
,
E. R.
Priest
, and
W. H.
Matthaeus
,
J. Fluid Mech.
280
,
95
(
1994
).
11.
O.
Alexandrova
,
V.
Carbone
,
P.
Veltri
, and
L.
Sorriso-Valvo
,
Astrophys. J.
674
,
1153
(
2008
), arXiv:astro-ph/:0710.0763.
12.
Y.
Narita
,
S. P.
Gary
,
S.
Saito
,
K.
Glassmeier
, and
U.
Motschmann
,
Geophys. Res. Lett.
38
,
L05101
, doi: (
2011
).
13.
E.
Marsch
,
X.-Z.
Ao
, and
C.-Y.
Tu
,
J. Geophys. Res.
109
,
4102
, doi: (
2004
).
14.
M.
Heuer
and
E.
Marsch
,
J. Geophys. Res.
112
,
3102
, doi: (
2007
).
15.
S.
Bourouaine
,
E.
Marsch
, and
F. M.
Neubauer
,
Geophys. Res. Lett.
37
,
14104
, doi: (
2010
), arXiv:astro-ph/:1003.2299 [astro-ph.SR].
16.
L. K.
Jian
,
C. T.
Russell
,
J. G.
Luhmann
,
R. J.
Strangeway
,
J. S.
Leisner
, and
A. B.
Galvin
,
Astrophys. J.
701
,
L105
(
2009
).
17.
L.
Ofman
,
J. M.
Davila
,
V. M.
Nakariakov
, and
A.
Viñas
,
J. Geophys. Res.
110
,
9102
, doi: (
2005
).
18.
J.-S.
He
,
E.
Marsch
,
C.-Y.
Tu
,
S.
Yao
, and
H.
Tian
,
Astrophys. J.
731
,
85
(
2011
).
19.
O.
Stawicki
,
S. P.
Gary
, and
H.
Li
,
J. Geophys. Res.
106
,
8273
, doi: (
2001
).
20.
M. L.
Goldstein
,
D. A.
Roberts
, and
C. A.
Fitch
,
J. Geophys. Res.
99
,
11519
, doi: (
1994
).
21.
T. N.
Parashar
,
M. A.
Shay
,
P. A.
Cassak
, and
W. H.
Matthaeus
,
Phys. Plasmas
16
,
032310
(
2009
).
22.
T. N.
Parashar
,
S.
Servidio
,
B.
Breech
,
M. A.
Shay
, and
W. H.
Matthaeus
,
Phys. Plasmas
17
,
102304
(
2010
).
23.
S. A.
Markovskii
and
B. J.
Vasquez
,
Astrophys. J.
739
,
22
(
2011
).
24.
B. D. G.
Chandran
,
B.
Li
,
B. N.
Rogers
,
E.
Quataert
, and
K.
Germaschewski
,
Astrophys. J.
720
,
503
(
2010
).
25.
T.
Bagdonat
and
U.
Motschmann
,
J. Comput. Phys.
183
,
470
(
2002
).
26.
T.
Bagdonat
,
“Hybrid Simulation of Weak Comets,”
PhD thesis (
TU Braunschweig
, Germany,
2005
).
27.
J.
Müller
,
S.
Simon
,
U.
Motschmann
,
J.
Schüle
,
K.-H.
Glassmeier
, and
G. J.
Pringle
,
Comput. Phys. Commun.
182
,
946
(
2011
).
28.
A.
Kolmogorov
,
Dokl. Akad. Nauk SSSR
30
,
301
(
1941
).
29.
T. H.
Stix
,
Waves in Plasmas
(
American Institute of Physics
,
New York
,
1992
).
30.
M.
Brambilla
,
Kinetic Theory of Plasma Waves: Homogeneous Plasmas
,
International Series of Monographs on Physics Vol. 96
(
Clarendon Press
,
Oxford, UK
,
1998
).
31.
D. G.
Swanson
,
Plasma Waves
, 2nd ed. (
Institute of Physics Publishing
,
Bristol, UK
,
2003
).
32.
C.-Y.
Tu
and
E.
Marsch
,
J. Geophys. Res.
99
,
21481
, doi: (
1994
).
33.
B. T.
MacBride
,
C. W.
Smith
, and
M. A.
Forman
,
Astrophys. J.
679
,
1644
(
2008
).
34.
Y. W.
Jiang
,
S.
Liu
, and
V.
Petrosian
,
Astrophys. J.
698
,
163
(
2009
), arXiv:astro-ph/:0802.0910.
35.
S. A.
Markovskii
,
B. J.
Vasquez
, and
B. D. G.
Chandran
,
Astrophys. J.
709
,
1003
(
2010
).
36.
C. H. K.
Chen
,
T. S.
Horbury
,
A. A.
Schekochihin
,
R. T.
Wicks
,
O.
Alexandrova
, and
J.
Mitchell
,
Phys. Rev. Lett.
104
,
255002
(
2010
), arXiv:astro-ph/:1002.2539 [physics.space-ph].
37.
F.
Sahraoui
,
M. L.
Goldstein
,
G.
Belmont
,
P.
Canu
, and
L.
Rezeau
,
Phys. Rev. Lett.
105
,
131101
(
2010
).
38.
W. H.
Matthaeus
,
M. L.
Goldstein
, and
D. A.
Roberts
,
J. Geophys. Res.
95
,
20673
, doi: (
1990
).
39.
S. P.
Gary
,
S.
Saito
, and
H.
Li
,
Geophys. Res. Lett.
35
,
L02104
, doi: (
2008
).
40.
S. R.
Spangler
,
Astrophys. J.
376
,
540
(
1991
).
41.
E.
Marsch
,
Living Rev. Sol. Phys.
3
,
1
(
2006
) (http://www.livingreviews.org/lrsp-2006-1 (cited on September 23, 2011)).
42.
K.
Liu
,
S. P.
Gary
, and
D.
Winske
,
J. Geophys. Res.
116
,
A07212
, doi: (
2011
).
43.
D. A.
Roberts
,
M. L.
Goldstein
,
L. W.
Klein
, and
W. H.
Matthaeus
,
J. Geophys. Res.
92
,
12023
, doi: (
1987
).
44.
S.
Yao
,
J.-S.
He
,
E.
Marsch
,
C.-Y.
Tu
,
A.
Pedersen
,
H.
Rème
, and
J. G.
Trotignon
,
Astrophys. J.
728
,
146
(
2011
).
45.
G. G.
Howes
,
J. M.
TenBarge
, and
W.
Dorland
,
Phys. Plasmas
18
,
102305
(
2011
).
46.
R. T.
Wicks
,
T. S.
Horbury
,
C. H. K.
Chen
, and
A. A.
Schekochihin
,
Mon. Not. R. Astron. Soc.
407
,
L31
(
2010
), arXiv:astro-ph/:1002.2096 [physics.space-ph].
47.
P. J.
Coleman
,
Jr
.,
Astrophys. J.
153
,
371
(
1968
).
48.
Y.
Zhou
and
W. H.
Matthaeus
,
J. Geophys. Res.
95
,
14881
, doi: (
1990
).
49.
S. R.
Cranmer
and
A. A.
van Ballegooijen
,
Astrophys. J.
594
,
573
(
2003
), arXiv:astro-ph/0305134.
50.
J. A. Araneda, H. Astudillo, and E. Marsch, Space Sci. Rev. 1 (2011).
51.
T. N.
Parashar
,
S.
Servidio
,
M. A.
Shay
,
B.
Breech
, and
W. H.
Matthaeus
,
Phys. Plasmas
18
,
092302
(
2011
).
52.
L.
Ofman
,
A.-F.
Viñas
, and
P. S.
Moya
,
Ann. Geophys.
29
,
1071
, doi: (
2011
).
You do not currently have access to this content.