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Formation of plasmoid chains in magnetic reconnection
R Samtaney1, N F Loureiro, D A Uzdensky
1Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08543, USA.
Physical Review Letters
|October 2, 2009
Summary
Magnetic reconnection in resistive Magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) becomes unstable at high Lundquist numbers, forming plasmoid chains. This challenges the standard quasistationary model, indicating inherently time-dependent behavior.
Area of Science:
- Plasma Physics
- Magnetohydrodynamics (MHD)
- Computational Astrophysics
Background:
- The Sweet-Parker model describes magnetic reconnection in a quasistationary manner.
- Previous studies were limited to lower Lundquist numbers (S).
- Understanding high-S reconnection is crucial for astrophysical phenomena.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate magnetic reconnection in resistive MHD at very large Lundquist numbers (10^4 <= S <= 10^8).
- To analyze the stability of large-aspect-ratio Sweet-Parker current sheets.
- To characterize the formation and dynamics of plasmoids during reconnection.
Main Methods:
- Detailed numerical simulations of resistive Magnetohydrodynamics (MHD).
- Focus on large-aspect-ratio Sweet-Parker current sheets.
- Analysis of plasmoid formation, scaling, and growth rates.
Main Results:
- Sweet-Parker current sheets are unstable to super-Alfvénically fast plasmoid chain formation.
- Plasmoid number scales as S^(3/8) and linear growth rate as S^(1/4).
- Nonlinear regime shows plasmoids disrupting the reconnection layer, indicating time-dependent behavior.
Conclusions:
- High-Lundquist-number magnetic reconnection is inherently time-dependent.
- The standard Sweet-Parker quasistationary picture requires revision for S > 10^4.
- Plasmoid instability plays a critical role in high-S reconnection dynamics.
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