An Analytical Model of Reconnection Rate in Electron-only Reconnection
Modeling the reconnection rate of collisionless electron-only reconnection presents a theoretical challenge. Unlike traditional magnetic reconnection with ion coupling, electron-only reconnection has a higher reconnection rate due to the magnetic flux being frozen in the electron flow, which is cons...
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
IOP Publishing
2025-01-01
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| Series: | The Astrophysical Journal |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/addece |
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| Summary: | Modeling the reconnection rate of collisionless electron-only reconnection presents a theoretical challenge. Unlike traditional magnetic reconnection with ion coupling, electron-only reconnection has a higher reconnection rate due to the magnetic flux being frozen in the electron flow, which is constrained by the electron-Alfvénic velocity rather than the ion-Alfvénic velocity. Recent observations have revealed that the electron-only reconnection rate is about 0.23, which is at the high end of the theoretical range, and the electron flow velocity in the outflow region falls significantly below the electron-Alfvénic velocity. Based on MHD and gyrokinetic theory, we propose a steady-state analytical model to calculate the reconnection rate in electron-only reconnection. Our model demonstrates that the electric field generated in the outflow direction by the decoupling between ions and electrons in the outflow region plays a crucial role in suppressing electron-only reconnection. The plasma beta value negatively affects the reconnection rate in electron-only reconnection, i.e., the larger the plasma beta, the smaller the reconnection rate. The analytical results of our model align well with the reconnection rates reported in previous studies. |
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| ISSN: | 1538-4357 |